Sapphire
by SapphireClaw
Summary: Sapphire isn't one to question things, but when she sees a odd creature during a raid on the diamond dogs, she questions her identity. Why does this creature look so much like her? Is Sapphire a dragon like her parents, or is she something else? The truth is out, and Sapphire's true nature is exposed. but how can she live with a hoof in each world when both are at the brink of war?
1. prologue

Before we start, i must apologize in advanced. in the middle of the next part, the point of view changes to first person. XD don't mind that, its my first story. Enjoy anyway! ps: like i said, its my first story so don't judge. im pretty good at writing but terrible at other types other than first person,

Sapphire

This is a story about a young filly. She was suddenly orphaned when her parents were lost. They might be dead, or they could be looking for their lost daughter right now.

The little filly was no more than a year old. Having been lost so suddenly frightened her. She had no idea where she was. The purple pony stared around at the thick foliage that surrounded her. Where was her mamma?

If the filly even knew where she was, it might have been easier for her to cope. But she was in a dreadful place, deep in the everfree forest.

She tried to stand, but her legs seemed to be too weak. Looking behind her, she saw a large, steep, muddy hill. A small trail of dents in the earth showed that she had fallen down it. "_How long have I been unconscious? Where am I?_

After resting for a bit, the little filly could stand. She was still weak but could walk. She trotted down a small trail, looking at the eerie trees above. Their branches seemed to reach for her, clawing the air. She sped up, trying to outrun them as she imagined terrible monsters chasing her.

The running had used up all of the pony's strength, she was forced to lie down in a rocky clearing. If she had noticed the dragon prints in the rock before she had fallen asleep, she might have missed the most fortunate thing that would happened to her.

The little pony awoke to a tremendous beating of wings, she squeaked in fear and looked up, a huge black dragon was landing in the clearing. It wasn't the only one, a light red one flew behind the first.

The two dragons landed and started to dig. The filly watched them, curious and scared. The huge beasts stopped digging and started to eat something. The pony struggled to see what it was, they were eating ROCKS! the little filly watched in disbelief as the dragons chewed up an ore of some kind.

(Although dragons are magical, they need a way to help them control it. Unicorns have horns to do it, ad phoenixes have special feathers for flame. Dragons have their rage and teeth. But only certain dragons have found a way to channel fire energy in a more powerful way, platinum.

Since platinum is an additional way to channel fire, the dragons that use this technique no longer use rage as a power source. So in other words, dragons that use platinum are more gentle and calm than other dragons.

This ore can spark up the flame inside a dragon and in it's mouth. The beast chews it up, creating a layer of it on it's teeth, but not swallowing it. The dragons spit it out when they are done.

The dragons in front of the little filly were practicing this technique in the clearing, which is directly above a vein of platinum.)

The dragons were occupied with the rocks, so the young pony tried to sneak away. But her long legs were clumsy. She tripped over a stone, making it tumble aside. The dragons looked up from their chewing, noticing the little filly for the first time.

The poor scared pony cowered as the light red dragon stomped up to get a closer look. As she saw the young filly, instinct took hold. The dragon sniffed her and growled something to it's partner. The filly stayed perfectly still, but trembled in fear. Something softened in the dragon's eyes, motherly instinct.

the male dragon walked up. He held a small piece of platinum ore in his claws. He placed it next to the little pony.  
Slowly, the filly lifted her head and sniffed the rock. She glanced at the dragons, they stared at her with a gentle look.

She licked the stone, not wanting to offend the dragons. She tried to bite it, but the rock was too big. But she found that the ore was surprisingly soft. Not like normal stones. (ores are usually softer than when smelted) So she tried to eat some of it, but she spat it out after chewing it for a few seconds. She couldn't bring herself to swallow or chew. it was terribly hard and dirty, too hard for a filly as young as she to get very far with it.

But the dragons weren't offended, instead they seemed happy. The red one reached down and lifted the little pony up, she still trembled in fear. The dragon licked her affectionately and placed her on it's back and took off into flight.

The pony clung to the dragon's back for dear life. the wind threatened to blow her away, but she held tight. They dragons flew for some time, but the little pony couldn't tell where too. With the dragon's head in the way, it was hard to tell.

Soon, they landed in a large cave, the darkness enveloped them like a thick blanket. But light shone up ahead, it grew brighter and brighter. A huge chamber opened up. in it's center, a tall pile of gems rose, reflecting light from a hole in the roof.

The dragon placed the filly on the ground and laid down on the huge pile of treasure. The pony yawned and rubbed her eyes. Without realizing it, she crawled up and fell asleep next to the two dragons. I just seemed like this was meant to happen.

The two dragons looked down on the little sleeping filly, the female smiled, or what could be described as a smile, and laid her head next to the pony. The male did too, and together they slept. Predator and prey.

well, that's the end of the prologue! what do you think? should i post the rest? I'm gonna anyway!


	2. Chapter 1

Ten years later:

"Come on mom! Your going too slow!" a young filly crashed down a rocky slope, sliding on her hooves. A huge red dragon lumbered down after her. "what... What am I looking at?" she grumbled, glancing at the sun. It hasn't even risen!

The pony was a healthy purple mare. But her appearance is quite unusual. You have your standard tail, more jagged, but normal. And the mane is the same, spiky but not unusual.

Move to the head and things start to get weird. Her teeth are sharp, almost NEVER heard of in ponies. Since dragons eat gems, she had to catch up and get used to their customs. Even her eyes were different. They sparked with a beautiful deep royal blue. and in the center, not a pupil, but a slit like a reptile. The eye was keen for spotting movement and reflecting objects. They were very sharp, as good as a hawk's.

The most different feature must be her wings. She can't remember if she was a Pegasus or not, but she could fly. But not on standard feathered wings, on strong, dragon wings. They were at least twice as large as a normal Pegasus's feathered wings. The size is needed for all the muscle used to power them.

"look!" the filly said, pointing with her hoof at a large burrow in the dirt. "a diamond dog forgot to close a tunnel back up!" she trotted up to it and looked down at the darkness. "woah..." she said, a faint "woah" could be heard again. "Echo!" the pony called.

"Sapphire, don't announce yourself to them! Be quiet." the red dragon growled. "aw... Mom. That's no fun!" she whined jokingly. The dragon gave the pony a playful nudge, the force sent her sprawling. The pony jumped right back up, unharmed.

"so, can I raid them yet?" the filly asked eagerly. She trotted in place to try and loose the energy that bubbled inside her. "Oh, alright! But do be careful, these diamond dogs can be vicious!" too late, the pony had already raced into the tunnel. The dragon shook her huge head, "what am I going to do with you?"

The purple pony crawled through the dirty burrow for what seemed like hours, only to pop out into a chamber after a few minutes of crawling.

The filly looked around, the walls were stone, illuminated by some glowing crystals. "Hmmm... I'll take that!" she said, plucking the shimmering crystals from the walls. She slipped the stones into a pouch around her back, later learned that it was called a saddle bag.

It had a peculiar symbol on the side. It was a shade of purple, but much brighter than her own purple coat. And it had a symbol of stars, several of them. Some where white, some purple, and some a light magenta color.

Her mother had told her a little about how she got it, she found it at uncle cobalt's. He was causing a problem for the animals that lived in the valley below where he lived so they sent a group of animals to go ask him to stop. They convinced him, but one animal had left it's bag behind.

The glowing crystals took up little space. The pony grabbed nine more and headed off. She followed a tunnel into a larger cave, the walls glittered with gems. But none valuable enough to suit the her father's taste.

Sapphire stopped when she heard voices, what sound was that?  
It said, "but I thought you WANTED WHINING?!" it was high pitched and soft. Not like the growly accent that she gained while learning how to communicate with the dragons.

Peeking over the corner, the filly could see a huge group of diamond dogs surrounding a type of animal. Sapphire couldn't see it clearly with all the dogs in the way, but she could make out a white coat and a dark purple mane, almost the same color as Sapphire's coat! There was also an odd protrusion on it's head, it tapered at the top and had a spiral traced up it.

Sapphire watched the dogs with curiosity, they were trying to get the animal to tell them where the gems were. She always had some cunning remark that annoyed the dogs immensely. Sapphire actually felt sort of sorry for the diamond dogs.

Sapphire pressed herself close to the wall and snuck across the cave to the other side. She trotted down the eerie tunnel until she spotted light. It was a shimmering red-orange. But it was faint.

Sapphire entered the small room cautiously. Her eyes widened at what she saw, on a pedestal was a huge fire ruby. All dragons know true fire rubies can only be made from a dragon's last breath of fire.

Since dragons live for so long and are extremely hard to destroy, others have found a way to replicate them. Instead of killing or waiting for a dragon to die, these dragons use their own fire.

Only when your fire is hottest, can you even begin to make one. You must capture the heat using magic, a time freezing spell or a separating spell. Extract the flame via magic and combine with a ruby of high value.

If you tried hard enough, the flame will start to burn inside the ruby. It works best if the ruby is the shape of a heart or another circular shape to help the heat flow. It's also willpower that helps this process, if you don't try hard enough, the fire will reject you. This makes it hard for crooks to manufacture these precious gems and sell them illegally.

Sapphire examined the ruby, definitely genuine. How did these diamond dogs ever acquire such a thing? The flame inside the brilliant red flickered with life.

One can loose herself while staring into a fire ruby, the fire seems hypnotic. This also boosts it's value, demands for this gem are outrageous. The hypnotic powers will put people with insomnia to sleep. In fact, some people have gathered a group of others with insomnia and one, usually filthy rich, acquires a fire ruby to help them sleep.

Sapphire glanced at the pedestal the gem sat upon. Doesn't look like it's booby-trapped. The pony peered through the gem's clear crystal and down at the bottom where it stood. Aha! A button. But diamond dogs are stupid, they could never build a trap like this or even FIND a fire ruby, who is providing them with these items?!

Feeling determined to take the ruby to defend the dead dragon's honor, Sapphire quickly snatched the ruby from the pedestal. She then quickly placed a glowing crystal that she picked up onto the button.

Nothing happened... The white crystal glowed atop the trapped pedestal. Nothing sounded or moved. Sapphire looked down the tunnel, no diamond dogs were running to take back their gem. The purple pony breathed a sigh of relief and placed the ruby into the bag.

Sapphire trotted quietly down another tunnel. She heard voices again! quickly diving into a crack in the wall, Sapphire hid just in time. These voices were unlike anything she had ever heard. They were soft and clear, not mumbled like the diamond dogs' accent. Or growly like a dragon's.

legs appeared as six animals walked past. They had legs like herself... She recognized the voice of that one high-pitched animal earlier. It was saying, "well, it wasn't all that bad. At least we have enough gems to finish my outfit!" and then another came up, "yep!" followed by crunching as if something was eating glass. Then the other voice spoke up, "we will as long as you don't eat them all, Spike!"

Sapphire waited for the odd creatures to leave the tunnel before exiting the crack. Still confused by what she heard, sapphire walked strait into a room full if diamond dogs. Sapphire tried to jump into a shadow but they had already spotted her.

"OH NO!" the leader dog said, "not another one! what more do you want from us?! The noises are too much!" he wailed. Sapphire stood there, bewildered. What noises? What were they talking about. Well, she couldn't pass up the offer to leave without being stopped!

So sapphire trotted off into the main tunnel. Gems glittered like stars around her. One in particular caught her eye. It was a deep blue sapphire, round and polished. The pony dug at the rock with her hoof until it popped free from the wall. Sapphire gazed at the brilliant blue. A small star reflection sparkled on the surface.

Sapphire put the stone inside the gem bag and kept walking. She picked up a few other gems along the way and soon found the exit. Sapphire didn't notice the new mark on her thigh, a sapphire with a star in the middle, surrounded by blue and red fire. She didn't even know what a "cutie mark" was.

ok, end of chapter one. i know that "Dragonshy" and the diamond dog episodes were aired at different times than shown here, but meh.


	3. Chapter 2

"ahhhh... Fresh air!" sapphire breathed a long breath, the air still cold from morning. She spread her wings, the powerful dragon wings fluttered in the cool breeze. With a couple of flaps and a short sprint, Sapphire took off.

Flying was quite easy when you have strong reptilian wings. but it had a downside. aside from all that power and speed, you can't turn as quickly as a normal pegasus.

Sapphire flew for a short while before arriving at her home. The huge cave yawned above her, engulfing her in darkness. Her sharp eyes quickly adjusted to the dark and she continued until she was in the main chamber.

Her parents were there. Her mom, a light red dragon with pinkish spikes. And her dad, a grey-black dragon with dark green spikes. They lifted their heads when they saw Sapphire. Something seemed off, as if the air crackled with tension.

Sapphire slid the saddle bag off and leaped into the horde pile. The gold coins sprayed everywhere. She scrambled up to her mother and hugged her (as close to a hug as she can get) and then her father.

"so, Uh... What did you bring?" Sapphire's mother asked. "oh! I have something amazing!" the pony exclaimed, rushing back over to her saddle bag and picking it up.

Sapphire brought her bag over to her parents and dug through it. First she pulled out the ten glowing crystals. "these are for places in the cave that are too dark." Sapphire began. She then pulled out the additional gems she collected. "these are normal jewels but look at this one!" she pointed at the big round sapphire, "its beautiful! And it's a sapphire, like my name!"

Sapphire stopped and looked at her parents before pulling out one last item. "this one is going to be a surprise." she quickly slipped the fire ruby out and held it up to her parents. They gasped in surprise at the large ruby.

"W-Where did you get this?" Sapphire's mom exclaimed. "I stole it from the diamond dogs! But I don't get it, they aren't smart enough to buy or make a fire ruby. Plus, the ruby was on a booby-trapped pedestal, they couldn't build something like that." sapphire said.

"Well, at least we can honor this dragon's spirit more than they ever could." Sapphire's mom said, lifting up the ruby and placing it on the very top of the treasure horde.

"thats not all, I saw a weird creature. I didn't see all of it but I did see a mane and a horn of some sort. I also saw their legs while I hid in a crack." sapphire said. Her parents looked at each other and then back at sapphire. "w-what's wrong?" she asked.

"we were afraid you wouldn't come back, but also somehow hopeful that you wouldn't." her parents began. "why?" sapphire asked. "we saw a group of... Ponies walk out of the diamond dogs' tunnel. We were worried that you had gone off with them." her mother said sadly.

"why would I ever run off with, what was it?, with ponies. I don't even know what they are!" sapphire exclaimed. Her parents looked at each other again,

"Sapphire, honey, I'm sure that you know by now that you aren't a dragon." her mother started again. "yeah... But I could be a new kind or, some weird dragon." sapphire argued, getting worried.

The pony's mother reached down and lifted her daughter. "this is hard for us to tell you, so please listen. We found you in a clearing all by yourself, you were only a baby. So we took you home and cared for you."

"we planned to release you when you were old enough but then you started to change." her mother explained. "change? How?" sapphire said. "well, your teeth grew sharp from your new diet of gems. we thought that that was alright and that it wouldn't affect you. But then your eyes started to change. They grew stronger from darkness, gem spotting, and hunting."

"These were the first differences you gained, then your wings grew. you were already a pegasus, so you could fly with us where we went when you were old enough. But your wings were too weak and so they started to change for the situations we had on a daily basis."

"I don't know if it was because of the magic we radiate what caused it, or that it was destiny alone. It doesn't matter whatever it was, or how much you will change, we will always love you." Sapphire's mother finished.

She ran a claw through her daughter's blue and purple mane. Sapphire nuzzled her back. "I hope you understand, we kept it a secret because we were worried you would leave us. And we loved you very much, like we do now." her mother added.

"It's alright, I understand. I just need a moment to process all of this." Sapphire said, flapping down to the cave floor. She smiled at her parents before trotting to her room. (which was a smaller cave that her mom or dad can't fit into. It was where Sapphire would go for quiet.)

Sapphire sat on the small horde of treasure that was piled in the back of the cave. The room had a few furnishings: a newly installed glowing crystal from her raid in the morning to light up her room, a mirror (melted quartz in an oval shape, works the same) and a small desk with some paper and pencil.

The paper was burnt a tiny bit from her mother getting it for her, from an old house that was abandoned after a mean dragon had raided it.

Sapphire stared at the roof of the cave while she thought. "where did I come from? Do I have any real parents? Why do I look somewhat like a dragon?"

at that thought, sapphire got up and examined herself. She looked at her wings, they even had scales along the "finger" parts for protection. Her purple fur covered some of the bottom of her wing where it connects to her shoulders.

Next Sapphire looked at her teeth in the mirror. they were very sharp, giving her a scary face when she smiles. Even her eyes seemed scary. Although a beautiful color, deep royal Sapphire blue, she couldn't get past the reptile pupils.

Sapphire sad back down with a sigh. A sparkle caught her eye, she looked into her bag and took out the sapphire. The gem shined beautifully. although the crystal was slightly clear, the light made a star shimmer on it's surface.

The beauty if the gem inspired Sapphire. Something awoke inside her, the need to create!


	4. Chapter 3

Sapphire rushed over to her desk and grabbed a piece if paper and a pencil. She scribbled away, concentrating hard. Paper wad after paper wad, she worked. Her pencil became dull, so she used her razor-sharp teeth to sharpen it.

When she finished the drawing, Sapphire rushed to her horde and started to take out the pieces of steel. A sheet of it on a shield, the blade of a sword, or the base of a royal crown. Sapphire tore the steel from the objects and piled them up.

Soon she had lots if steel to work with. Sapphire took a bit if the steel and laid it in front of her. She took a deep breath, gathering her strength, and blew a burst of flame. The steel melted, Sapphire quickly used a different bit if steel to shape the melted bits.

Soon, the molten steel formed a hammer. Sapphire repeated this until she had tools of all kinds: nails, chippers, tongs, etc, and even a small  
anvil-like object.

Sapphire created one more item, a large bucket. She took the tub to the back of the cave where a small spring flowed. she filled the bucket with water. She carried it back and set it beside her table. She had even made a tray to hold coals if she needed them.

Sapphire started separating gems and gold from the horde. Gold bars and nuggets, beautiful diamonds and shimmering jewels. She packed the gold over to her table, gasping at the weight.

With all of her materials there, Sapphire started working. She heated up the gold until it melted. Pouring it into a square pan, she let it cool for a little while.

Sapphire glanced at her drawing and pulled the sheet of gold out. It was perfectly square with a thickness of an IPod (I couldn't find a different thing to compare thickness xD) Sapphire took a deep breath and concentrated all of her dragon energy into one place.

Sapphire blew a fine stream of blue flame. Sparks flew as the fire cut the gold plate with fine lines. Sapphire gasped for breath, taking a small rest.

When she felt better, Sapphire cut another piece from the gold, exactly like the first. It was about four inches long on top and then it goes down and tapers in until it hits the edge of the four inches.

The purple pony pressed the two identical pieces of gold together, tapering out just a bit. She welded the together on the back so you couldn't see the weld marks.

Sapphire soon made several smaller rectangles. Two were about two inches long and one inch wide, she welded them to the sides of the first piece and the second piece so that the top was flat.

She slightly bent the small rectangles back. She also bent the bottom of the triangle back that formed when the first and second pieces were welded.

Sapphire began making little chain links, connecting a bunch of small rectangles together. They tapered off in sizes, getting bigger as they neared the chest plate (the 1st and 2nd pieces)

Next, Sapphire used the chisel to carve designs into the gold. Swirls, vines, and moons seemed to dance on the metal as Sapphire created them. She also pounded indents into the gold, usually in the center of the piece or small ones around the edges.

Finally, Sapphire started setting the gems into the dents. She put a tiny drop of molten gold into them before pressing the gem inside. Soon the smaller pieces were finished. Only the big one was left.

On the very top of the chest plate, where the two plates are welded, was the oval sapphire. It was in front where everyone could see it. It was the crown jewel, literally. It was right above where the fire ruby would go, like a crown.

It was done. Sapphire stopped and sat down. She almost fell backwards when she realized that she was exhausted. She stepped back to look at her work, a beautiful necklace.

It was sort of a chest plate, but it sat just above your ribcage, the triangle went lower and covered a tiny bit of the chest. It was tapered so it curved with the slope of her chest.

The only bit that's missing was the fire ruby. The big heart indent was empty. Sapphire collapsed in her horde. She jumped back up, surprised. Her horde was smaller now! Sapphire laughed and grabbed her necklace.


	5. Chapter 4

**ok! before reading the story, i have to say something. this is the chapter before i switched the point of view by mistake! XD dont mind it please. im too lazy to go back through and change everything, so thats how the whole rest of the story will go!**

Sapphire walked out of her room, the gold necklace heavy on her neck. She saw her parents on the treasure pile and trotted faster. They looked at her in surprise. Her mother had some tears in her eyes.

Sapphire sat down in front of them, "what's wrong?" she asked. "w-we thought you ran away! We haven't seen you for hours!" her mother sniffed. Sapphire looked at the cave entrance, it was bright, about midday.

"Wow! I had lost track of time! I'm sorry for worrying you! I was looking at that sapphire and felt the urge to make something for it." sapphire said, Pointing at her necklace.

Her mother leaned in so she could see, her eyes sparkled with pride. "Wow! You made that?!" she exclaimed. "yep! I don't really know what happened, I just felt like I needed to create. So I started to melt and shape the metals, half of the stuff I did was stuff I had no idea I could do!" Sapphire replied.

A tear slipped from her mother's eye. It isn't all that rare to see a dragon cry, but it is rare to see one cry tears of joy. *sniff* "honey, that's the most lovely thing I have ever seen." she said. The dragon noticed the empty dent, "why is that empty?" she asked.

"Oh... Uh that was where I was going to put... Well, I don't know... The fire ruby?" Sapphire mumbled. Her mother looked at her, but it wasn't with a disapproving look, it was full of love. Her dad reached up and grabbed the ruby from the treasure. He brought it down and gave it to sapphire.

Sapphire was about to run to her room and fit the ruby into the necklace when she heard her mother. "Sapphire..." the dragon whispered. "yes ma?" she answered, almost afraid to reply. "now that you know that you are a pony... We think that it might be best that you go out and find your own path." she murmured painfully.

Sapphire stood there in shock. "what? Your letting me go be with other ponies?!" she squeaked. Her mother and father both nodded their heads. "go pack your things sweetie" her mother said as Sapphire trotted towards her room.

The young filly flopped down on the pile of treasure after fitting the ruby into her necklace. With it's supplies having been used, the horde could barely fit her body. She processed what she had just heard. Go out and meet others like her? The thought both terrified and excited her.

Slowly, Sapphire began to pack up. She took some paper and a pencil, the necklace sketch, and some food. She wondered if she should take some gems or some fruit to try and get used to it so the other ponies won't freak out.

Sapphire draped the bag over her shoulder. She noticed the odd symbol on the side again. Maybe she could find the owner of this bag and return it. She laughed.

Sapphire left her room and walked to her parents. Her mother held something out to her, a small leather bag. Sapphire took it and opened it up, it was full of precious gems! "that should be enough to live off of." her mother said, holding back tears.

"thanks mom, it's perfect." Sapphire said, hugging her mother's leg. She hugged her father too. "if anything or anyone gives you trouble, talk to me. I'll take care of em." he said. Sapphire knew he was joking and hugged him.

Sapphire waved good bye as she walked out. She heard her mother start to cry, "don't worry mom! I'll visit!" she called back. Her mom called, "bye! We love you! Fly safe! Remember to eat every day! Remember change yo-" "OK MA!" I yelled back, laughing.


	6. Chapter 5

It was sunset already when Sapphire flew out of her home. But, having dragon eyes, she had excellent night vision. She opened up her map,  
"hmm... "ponyville.'" she mumbled, pointing the direction and heading that way.

Sapphire flew for an hour and got hungry. She pulled out an apple. "Hm.. Haven't had one of these ever since... Well I can remember." she sniffed it, and took a bite. Sapphire expected it to be gross, but, surprisingly, it wasn't bad. She finished it and focused on flying again.

"there it is! Ponyville!" sapphire exclaimed as she flew above the town. It was dark already so all of the lights shone like yellow stars. She looked at them in awe.

Sapphire started to glide downwards when a noise distracted her. It was the sound of flapping wings! She turned and looked where it was coming from. A young colt was flying after dark, he seemed lost and could hardly see. He was even trying to use a flashlight in the air!

"Uh oh... That's not right. How am I supposed to know if that's ponyville or not?" he grumbled. "um... Little boy? I could help you." Sapphire said quietly. "Hm?! Who said that?!" he said, swinging his flashlight around, trying to see her

"it's ok, it's ok! I want to help you!" I said, trying to calm the colt. "uhhh... Ok, but I don't like this." he said suspiciously. "where are you trying to go? I have a map, I can fly you home if you like." I offered. "this isn't a trick is it?!" he said, suspicious again.

"no! Heavens no. Why would I want to trick you?" I exclaimed. "well, I don't know. The mean kids at school don't say why either. You could be one of them trying to trick me!" he accused. "oh? You get picked on at school? Well, I could scare them if you'd like." I offered.

"scare them? What's so scary about you? You sound as kind as FlutterShy. Where are you anyway..." he said, sweeping his flashlight to find me.

"I'm to your left... No your other left!" Sapphire said. "oh! I see your leg!" his flashlight beam lit up her back leg. It moved it's way up. "it's so dark that your wings look funny." he said. "no, they are different, you probably have feathered wings, right?" I said.

The wind was beginning to blow, the colt's little wings couldn't withstand it. But my powerful wings easily could. "woah... This wind is pushing me!" he yelled. "Wait! Flap harder, fly towards my voice! My wings may be different but they are strong!" Sapphire called.

"I-I can't!" the little boy's flashlight was whipping everywhere as he was jostled by the wind. "hang in there! I'm coming to get you!" I yelled. I dove for the light of his flashlight. But the wind was making me squint, limiting my vision.

I felt the colt's fur and wrapped my hooves around his body. "got ya!" I said triumphantly. "waaahhh! I wanna go home!" the colt cried. "I'll take you home, don't worry." I said as I power stroked through the harsh wind.

I finally reached the ground. I was in a forest of some kind. At least the mountains guarded Ponyville from the terrible winds. "ok! Where do you live little guy?" I said to the the little colt. I still held him in my hooves. I learned to walk on two legs for a short distance. The poor thing shivered from the cold. I wrapped my wings around him and sat down, trying to warm him up.

Soon the little colt's shivering stopped and he woke up. I had started a fire by then. He sat up and stretched. Suddenly the colt squeaked in pain. I rushed over, "what's wrong?" I said. "ow... My wing aches." he whimpered. "oh, it's from trying to fight that wind and flying around lost." I explained.

I handed the colt half an apple. He thanked me and watched the fire. He has been so focused on the storm that he never did get a good look at me. I think that might be best anyway. He's very young and might be frightened more than he already is.

"when will I go home?" the little pony asked. I looked up, the wind still howled and rain even began to fall. "How about we wait until the storm has passed." He nodded his head slowly. He obviously had something else on his mind.

"so what do we do now?" he asked. I stood up and dragged a log up to the fire. I sat down on it and patted the spot beside me. The colt got up and came over and sat down.

We watched the fire together for a while, then the kid noticed my necklace. "Wow! That's so awesome! Where did you get that?!" he exclaimed. "I made it. I even made all of the tools I used too." I said.

The colt cocked his head. "but I thought unicorns are usually the ones to do that stuff, cuz they have magic to lift the hammers and twist metal without having to use their own strength." he said.

"well... I'm not like other ponies." I said, trying to explain. "I know, but just cuz you have batty wings doesn't mean your not like other ponies!" he exclaimed. I thought about this. he's right, but other ponies might get intimidated and judge me how I look immediately out of fear before running away.

"Hmm... You have a good point, but my wings aren't all that's weird about me." I said softly. The colt looked at me and said, "I don't see anything." I know he doesn't, the fire's light isn't bright enough to show my face. I sighed.

"ok, I'll show you but promise me you won't think of me differently, ok?" I said. "Of course not! Your one of the nicest ponies I have ever met!" he said, looking at me. I turned my head and bent down so that the fire light could light it up. I opened my eyes...

The colt gasped, his eyes were wide too. The light reflected in my eyes, adding to the shock. I turned away, waiting for his comment. "y... you... Your eyes... That's so COOL!" he suddenly exclaimed. I jumped a bit, startled.  
"y-you think they're cool?" I asked. "of course! And a pretty color too!" he said happily. I chuckled, I like this kid.

"I'm guessing you like dragons." I said. "YEAH! I think dragons are so awesome, scary, but awesome scary!" he said loudly. "my parents were dragons. Well, my second parents were anyway. They told me that I was a normal pony before they found me. And then I started to change. First it was my eyes, with us living in a cave, my eyes grew stronger in the dark as well as in the day."

"And then my teeth changed..." the boy interrupted me, "your teeth?" he asked. I gave him a quick smile. "cool" he said slowly. "anyway, my teeth changed because of the food changes. This may seem gross to you, well, we ate gems." I said. "wait, you ate gems?!" the boy exclaimed. I nodded.

"I tried a fruit today, my first since I could remember. And it wasn't bad, good even. I'm gonna switch to herbivore mode for the time being. *boop*" I said. The colt laughed. " what about your wings? I want a pair!" he said.

"oh, I don't really know. My parents said that my feathered wings were too weak to keep up so they grew and changed with the situations I grew up in. My mother thinks that it might have been the magic that they radiate that could have caused me to change. But..." I stared off into space. The colt glanced around awkwardly. He wanted to change the subject, it was making her sad.

"hey, squirt, what's your name?" I said, turning to the little colt. "oh, I'm HailStone, or Hail for short." he said, smiling. "I'm Sapphire."

I looked up, the wind was dying down and the rain had stopped. "Well Hail, I guess it's time to go home!" I said. He looked at me, it was almost a sad look, but a happy one too.

"Yep, let's go. It's still dark out so I'll come with you." I said, standing up and stretching out my wings. "your wings are huge. Why are they that big?" Hail asked. "since they are strong, that means extra muscle, and extra muscle means weight. So they are big enough to carry me and even some extra weight, i don't know... Maybe... A little colt?!" I said, snatching him up. "hey! p-put me down!" he laughed.

I flew off, Hail was in pursuit. "are you sure you will fly on your own?" I said. "yep!" I glanced around, "how about you grab hold of my tail so you won't get lost again!" I said. I felt him grab my tail so I sped up, pulling him along.

"Wheres your house?" I called. "It's the fifth house on the right from town hall!" Hail mumbled through a mouthful of tail as he held on. "okay! here we go!" I said, starting to glide downwards. We spiraled down towards the town hall, banking right to Hail's house.

"Alright! Prepare for landing!" I said "copy that!" Hail joked. We made the final swoop towards his house.


	7. Chapter 6

I was having so much fun with Hail that I forgot that I might scare ponies. Me and Hail were laughing on his porch while we waited for his mom to answer the door. I bumbled Hail, he shoved me back.

The door opened, "hello?! Police? Have you found him?" a yellow pony stuck her head out of the door. She spotted Hail and burst through the door. She snatched up her son and gave him a deadly barrage of hugs and kisses.

After she had bear-hugged the last drop of life from Hail, she noticed someone else standing there. She gave one look at me and screamed. I jumped back, surprised. I looked around for anything that might have frightened her, realizing that it was me.

"Leave us alone! Is it money you want?!" Hail's mom yelled. I stuttered, at a loss for words. Hail finally gained enough breath to speak. "Mom! It's alright! She's nice!" he squeaked. His mom was squeezing him against her because she was afraid I was going to take him.

"what?! Nice?!" hail's mom exclaimed. Hail wriggled away from her grip and stumbled over to my side. "HailStone! Get away from that thing NOW!" she yelled. My ears went down and my wings drooped. Thing? Thats a new one. "No mom! Sapphire saved my life!" he yelled loudly.

Hail's mother seemed to snap out of super over protective mom mode. She looked at me suspiciously. "I'm sorry ma'm I didn't mean to scare you..." I began to apologize. But she saw my sharp teeth and gasped.

Hail sighed in frustration, "mom! She's... Not... Going... To... Hurt us." He said slowly, trying to get it through his mom's head. "I apologize again, I didn't mean to scare you." I said softly. I held out my hoof, "hello, my name is Sapphire, pleased to meet you." I said politely.

Hail's mother slowly shook my hoof and gave me another look over. "HEY SAPPHIRE, WANNA COME IN?" Hail suddenly said loudly. I looked at his mother for approval, she slowly nodded her head, still suspicious. I followed her inside.

It was a large house, especially for a family of two. It had nice furnishings and pictures. Hail's mother sat down on a couch. Another couch was in front of the other, a coffee table in between. I got on the other couch, Hail joined and sat beside me.

Hail's mother watched me like a hawk, being skeptical about every move I make. "so... Uh..." I said. "whats your name?" I asked awkwardly. Hail's mother narrowed her eyes at me, "I'm Lilly." I smiled, "nice to meet you Lilly."

Lilly started to warm up to me, getting less skeptical about how I breath or what I do in the slightest. Hail finally started up a conversation, thank goodness! But it wasn't the greatest topic.

"hey mom, Sapphire's parents were dragons!" Hail said eagerly. I gulped, I don't think that his mom will approve. "they were were they? Then how does she still look like a pony?" she argued.

"oh," I answered, "my real parents were normal ponies. But I got separated from them when I was very young, so I don't remember anything. Anyway, a dragon couple found me and cared for me."

" I don't know why it happened, my mother thinks that it might have been the magic that they radiate that caused me to change. But I did, my eyes grew stronger in the darkness, they grew sharp from jewel hunting."

"My teeth adjusted to the food changes, and my feathered wings were too weak so they grew stronger and more efficient for the tasks I dealt with each day." I finished, annoyed that I had to explain again. Lilly was thinking... "ok, what about my son. What happened?" she said, suspicious again.

"well, I was flying towards ponyville, but it was already nighttime and clouds covered the stars. Some wind started, but my wings are strong and I flew without any problem."

"Then I heard this noise, so I looked around and I saw Hail trying to fly at night. He had a flashlight, but it's not that useful while flying. He didn't have a map or anything. I offered to help him, but he must have already been scared because I just scared him more.

After I convinced him to let me help him, the wind grew tremendously. Poor Hail was tossed around in the wind, the rain just made it worse.

Finally, I caught him in my arms and I flew down to the ground. I landed in a forest by a mountain. The mountain shielded us from the wind. But that didn't help much. Hail was freezing, he was soaked too. So I built a fire and warmed him up.

He woke up so I gave him some apple.  
He told me his name and I told him mine. He asked me about why my wings were weird and so I told him. But instead of bring scared, he said that they were awesome. I guess he likes dragons." I finished.

Eventually, Lilly let herself enjoy my company. We told stories and answered questions. Hail asked me what my dragon parents were like, I said that they were very protective and kind. Our only enemy was the diamond dogs.

Soon, it was midnight and Hail was asleep on my lap. I smiled and gently lifted him off and set him down on the couch. "it was a pleasure talking to you Lilly, Hail will grow up to be a fine stallion. He's a good kid." I said. Lilly smiled, "it was fun, I'm sorry again for doubting you. I'll try not to judge right away, ok?" I smiled, "I should probably get going now, bye." "bye!"


	8. Chapter 7

I decided to walk for a while instead if fly. My wings are a little sore too. I trotted down town square, I was surprised at the number of people still out. Some were even taking walks like me. Not very many stopped, and those who did gave me weird looks. I lowered my head, trying to hide my eyes.

I wandered aimlessly around town. It just didn't feel right to be in such a busy place. I followed a small dirt path outside of town, it lead me into a pretty forest bathed in moonlight. I would have enjoyed the scenery better if I wasn't exhausted.

I finally came to a small cottage in the forest, it was a cute little house. I knocked on the door, but it opened when I touched. I walked inside and saw a note. It read:

"dear reader, I have gone to the southern fields to care for the field mice and rabbits. I wont be back until tomorrow morning."  
-FlutterShy

FlutterShy? Hmm. I don't know what to do, I'll just sleep outside somewhere near. I walked out of the cottage and down to a little creek that flowed next to the house. I took a Long drink before I continue searching for a place to sleep.

I walked around the cottage, there was a big yard with grass and various animal houses. I sighed and walked more. I came around to the corner, all that was there was a huge hollow tree. Probably for the squirrels, no doubt.

I was so exhausted! I struggled to keep myself awake and moving. I finally passed out on the bank of the creek.

A scream woke me. Startled, I jumped ten feet in the air and landed on my feet like a cat. I looked around frantically and saw a yellow pony with a light pink tail and mane. She was followed by a bunch of woodland creatures that now hid behind her legs.

"y-you must be FlutterShy." I said nicely, "it's great to meet you!" I said. She just continued to breath in gasps and stare at me with wide eyes. I lowered my head and laid back my ears. "sorry... I didn't mean to scare you." I said sadly. I started to walk away slowly.

"w-wait... Excuse me?" someone said in a soft voice. I turned to look. FlutterShy stopped in her tracks when my eyes met hers, she gulped, "urk... I gotta be strong. I'm always kind to everyone, no matter how scary they are." she said to herself and continued to walk slowly towards me.

I lowered myself to the ground, hoping that it might help this timid pony not to be afraid. She stopped beside me, "a-are you ok? Do you need any help?" she said in the same soft, quiet voice.

"no, I just was looking for a place to sleep but I saw your note and tried to stay away. but before i could find a place I collapsed on the bank." I explained. "oh, you poor thing." I flinched, I knew she didn't mean "thing" as a bad way, but It reminded me nevertheless.

FlutterShy glanced around, "are there more of you?" she asked. "no, I'm the only one." I answered. "Oh, that's good... "she sighed." Oh! Wait... I didn't mean it like that... Uh..." she stammered.

"it's ok, I understand. Your not the only one to see me as how I look." I said. I meant for it to cheer her up, but it only made her even more sad. "oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't know you were having a tough time in ponyville." she said, concerned.

"no, it's alright I made up with the other one. She's alright with me now. I had rescued her kid from the storm. But anyway, I heard that you are the kindest pony around." I said, trying to change the subject.

"Oh, well... Gosh... I can't claim that..." she murmured. "oh, ok. Well my name is Sapphire." I said. "nice to meet you Sapphire. Why are you lying in the dirt?" she asked. I stood up and shook the dirt from my coat.

"do you think that you could find a way to get everybody to know I'm here and I'm not aggressive? I don't want to go through that little introduction several times over." I said. FlutterShy stopped to think. "Well, its almost nightmare night, you'd fit right in! follow me." she said, trotting away.

I followed the yellow pegasus as she headed to town. I laid my ears back and lowered my head as we entered town through the park. Ponies and their families were frolicking and playing. We walked through without someone freaking out. Although I got some weird looks.

We exited the park and entered the market place. "I need to buy some things, could you wait... I mean that is if you want to." she said. I nodded and sat down on the ground. I looked around. I saw a clothes shop, maybe I can buy a shirt to cover my wings.  
I whispered to FlutterShy where I was going so she would know.

One problem. The shop is on the other side. How do I go there without drawing too much attention to myself? I shook my head, "your thinking too much. It's just a road." I told myself, keeping my head low as I crossed.

I looked at the clothes, but none looked good. FlutterShy walked up to me. "oh, Uh Sapphire! I forgot, my friend Rarity makes clothes, she could make you a special shirt!" I said yes, the shop clerk was giving me weird looks anyway. So we walked out of the market.


	9. Chapter 8

We arrived at "carousel boutique" and rang the doorbell. We heard a pony open the door. "FlutterShy! Darl- WHA ha HA!" (the rarity cry from the episode "the sonic rainboom) the white-and-purple pony exclaimed. "FlutterShy... Who's your friend?" rarity asked awkwardly.

I know her! I've seen her before. In the diamond dogs' caves!

"Oh, Rarity. This is Sapphire. She's new in town and would like a shirt that covers her wings." FlutterShy asked. "but of course darling, but why do you want to cover your wi- WA HA HA!" rarity exclaimed again as she peeked over and looked at Sapphire's wings.

"ahem... Sorry about that. I'm feeling out of it today." rarity said awkwardly. "sorry to both-" I started to say, when suddenly: "WAH H- oh forget it" rarity said, startled by my teeth. "as I was saying, sorry to bother you but I am having a hard time in ponyville with all these miss understandings when I meet somepony."

"It's mainly my eyes that set people off, but if I keep my head low and my eyes squinted, nobody will see them. And if I talk less, nobody will notice my teeth. But I need a shirt for my wings."

"yes yes darling, right away!" rarity said happily. She began to shove me towards the back of her shop. I saw a rack full of colorful dresses and outfits. "Hmmm... Rarity, could I get something less colorful? I don't want to draw too much attention to myself." I asked. "Yes of course!" rarity said.

Shirt after shirt, we searched for a good candidate but we couldn't. Rarity stomped her hoof, "we aren't giving up!" she exclaimed, running off to the back of her boutique. She returned with a midnight blue shirt. drawn on it in silver sparkly paint was a half moon. It had some silver sparkles around the edges of the shirt. The shade of blue matched my mane, it was perfect!

"I'll take it!" I announced. Rarity hopped in happiness, "I knew there was something for you darling!" rarity ran back to where she went to find the shirt and came back with a card. "The price is... Oh dear..." rarity said. "what's wrong?" I asked. "well, you see... This shirt is very expensive, that silver paint is made with real silver."

"The price is 1,000 bits..."  
" what?!" FlutterShy said, "1,000 bits? That's too much." she yelled, yet kept her soft, quiet voice. I looked around for an idea on what to do. I noticed rarity's outfits, most had diamonds attached to them or gems sewn around the edges.

"Rarity?" I asked. "Yes?" she answered. Would you let me have the shirt if I gave you this?" I said, reaching into my saddle bag and pulled out a hoofful of sparkling gems.

Rarity stared at the rare jewels that sat in my hoof. "where... Where did you GET those?!" she exclaimed. "will you?" I asked again. "YES! yes of course! Those are remarkably rare gems! Where ever did you find them?" rarity asked loudly.

"Well, my parents were dragons." I said. This is the third time I've had to explain this, so I'm gonna skip. After I told rarity and FlutterShy about my past, they stood there, bewildered.  
"well... I guess that explains it..." rarity said.

"So, can I have the shirt?" I asked again. "YES!" rarity said, running to wrap the shirt for me. "in fact, you may have a free accessory! Choose!" rarity called. I looked around, hmmm  
Oh!

"these sunglasses!" I said. "They'll cover my eyes!" I exclaimed in happiness. "alright! All wrapped and ready to go!"

"Wait... What's that?" rarity said, she walked over to my saddle bag where my necklace was sticking out a little. She pulled it out and squealed in happiness. "this is FABULOUS where did you get it! And what's this? A FIRE RUBY?! oh it's simply beautiful!" rarity fussed over my necklace.

"I made it, and all of the tools used to make it too. and that fire ruby is genuine, not manufactured." I explained

"Manufactured? There are fakes?" rarity asked. "yes, but they aren't bad, and they aren't fakes either. They just aren't as powerful and are made a different way." I explained.

"Oh take it from me Sapphire, before I take it again!" rarity said dramatically. I took my necklace and put it into my saddle bag.

"Hm? What now?! Thats twilight's saddlebag!" rarity stated, peering at the bag I carried. "where'd you get that?" rarity shook her head, "oh listen to me, this is the third time I asked you where you got something." she laughed.

"Who's twilight?" I asked. "my mother said that she found this at her brother's cave after a group of ponies asked him to move. One of them must have left it." I explained. Rarity and FlutterShy looked at each other, "that was us and our friends. The dragon was snoring a cloud of smoke that would have caused ponyville to be enveloped in darkness. Sorry if he was mad." they said.

"Nah, he was cool with it." I assured. He was actually a little sad and even scared, one of the ponies stood up to him and scolded him so hard, he cried!

"We must simply return this!" rarity said, "it wouldn't be right." she finished. "b-but how will I carry things?" I stuttered as rarity pushed me towards the door. She stopped, "I guess that you can have one of mine. after all, those jewels you gave me were beyond more than enough for the shirt and the sunglasses."

I chose a saddle bag that matched my shirt and headed out with the two ponies. We walked down the road. bustling streets and shops made quite a lot of noise.

I smelled something delicious, cinnamon-y and sweet! I stopped to enjoy the smell, rarity and FlutterShy noticed and walked back to where I was standing. I was just about to speak when my stomach growled. I laughed, "I forgot I haven't eaten in a day and a half!" I exclaimed.

Me and my new friends walked over to a bakery stand at the roadside. The smells surprised me, my sense of smell is powerful, too many smells can confuse me. I shook my head to clear it. I focused on what to buy and spotted an apple pie. I bought the pie and we shared it among ourselves, enjoying the sunny weather.


	10. Chapter 9

We continued until me and my friends arrived at a huge tree. It was built into a house on the inside. I noticed that the tree's leaves were green, but if the trunk had been carved into a house... Then how is it still alive?!

We knocked on the door, I braced myself for another scared pony as they answered the door.

"Hello?" I stared in disbelief as a little baby dragon stood there, holding open the door. He looked at FlutterShy and Rarity, "come in, Twilight is studying in her room as usual." he said as we walked inside.

I stared around, it was a beautiful place. A library! My parents taught me to read, but we only had one book. "TWILIGHT! Your friends are here!" the little dragon called. "I'll be right down!" came the reply.

I heard footsteps as a purple pony trotted down the stairs. She was a lighter purple with a darker purple mane with streaks of magenta in it.

"Hello rarity! Hi FlutterShy! What can I do for you?" twilight asked. The two mares looked at each other, FlutterShy nodded at rarity. Suddenly, the two stepped apart, exposing me when I hid behind them. I looked up, twilight was looking at me expectantly.

"uhhh... Hi?" I said awkwardly. "hello." twilight replied. I glanced around, "Uh, I have something that might belong to you..." I said, digging through my new saddle bag. I found the old one and handed it to Twilight. "I lost this when we went out to wake that dragon! How did you get it?" she asked

I'm getting tired of being asked where I got something. But I explained, and as expected, more questions arose. "wait, if your real parents were ponies, why do you look like that?" twilight asked.  
"Well, my new parents..." I stammered, twilight cut me off in another barrage of questions.

"how was it? Were they kind, the dragons? Did they treat you with gentle care or tough learning? Oh! I have so many questions!" she said in a high-pitched voice.

I tried to speak again but twilight continued her anti-answer interrogation with me. "what did you eat? Not meat I hope. What about gems? Did you eat gems, or were your pony jaws too weak? I think so... Unless you adapted... Anyway, how did you get this way?" twilight rambled.

She stopped and looked expectantly at me. "can I answer now?" I squeaked, startled by all the questions. "yes, please!" she said happily.

I took a deep breath, and began to answer the loads of questions. "it was a nice life, they were kind, they treated me with both gentle care and tough discipline..." I stopped to take a breath.

"I did NOT eat meat! Yes I ate gems, in fact they were two thirds of my diet. yes, my jaws were too weak. AND I did adapt, quickly, too. So quickly that it could have only been from the magic dragons radiate that changed me so much." I finished, gasping for air.

Twilight drifted off into thought, "that sounds plausible... A dragon radiating magic... I wonder it we have any books about it... No, we don't have much about dragons anyway."

"I've always been interested in dragon magic. and since we don't know much about them, I can't study it, and I have learned all i can from little spike over here!" twilight rambled, giving spike a little hug. "but I could study you..." twilight eyed me. This is getting awkward.

"Uhhh... I can tell you instead... I just met you, and this is getting a little weird..." I stuttered. Twilight shook her head as if to clear it. "I'm sorry, I am just getting a bit worked up. I have never heard or read about anything like you. It is all so intriguing!" she said.

Twilight paced around the room, thinking. I sat there awkwardly, glancing around. "hey, Twilight?" I said. She snapped out of thought for a moment, "Uh, yes?" she said. "may I look at your books? Maybe read a little?" I asked. She nodded and continued to pace.

I climbed up the stairs to the higher books. Little Spike climbed up after me. "so... Your parents were dragons?" he asked. "yup." I said. "that's cool... I don't know much about dragons myself..." he said sadly.

I stopped climbing, "why? You are a dragon after all..." I said, concerned. Spike sat on the step at the top of the stairs. I sat next to him. "well, I never knew my parents, twilight hatched and took care of me. I only saw other dragons when I decided to join the dragon migration..." spike trailed off.

"well, let's just say it wasn't the best decision!" spike laughed. "they were brutes, mean and rough. But they were nice sometimes..." spike rambled. He drifted off into memory. I nudged him playfully, he snapped out of his thinking and smiled. "sorry! At this rate, I'm gonna look like twilight!"


	11. Chapter 10

I told spike my story so far, we chatted and read the few books on dragons. "that right there is false!" I said, pointing to a picture of a huge dragon blowing fire from it's nostrils with writing on the bottom. "dragons cant breath fire through their nose! The nose is only used for smoke separation and release." I said.

"Really? Well that explains why I don't breath fire when I sneeze!" spike laughed. I shook my head, "it's a shame there are so few books on us. Dragons are extraordinary creatures." I mused. Now it was spike's turn to nudge me back to reality.

We laughed and talked some more, exchanging thoughts and stuff. I explained to spike that the dragons he met at the migration might have been the type that still use rage to fuel it's fire, not platinum. He nodded, intrigued.

Twilight suddenly trotted into the room. Me and spike were pointing at a page with a sneezing dragon on it. I laughed, "look at his face!" spike laughed too. He looked up, "oh! Twilight! Need anything?" he asked.

"no thank you. But I do need to ask Sapphire some more questions. I rolled my eyes jokingly and sat down next to twilight. "would you describe your parents' auras?" she asked. "hmmm... Let's see... They were both very protective. My mother was worrisome and gentle. My father was strong and loving." I said.

Twilight shook her head, "this isn't right! All of our accounts of dragon personality goes against that! The dragons we have encountered were stubborn, mean, ruthless, and downright lazy." she muttered angrily.

"Uh... Twilight?" I murmured. She continued to rant. I nudged her, and she snapped out of it. "huh? Yes?" she said. "I think I can explain that. You see, my parents use a technique that only a few dragons use despite it's power.

"Most dragons fuel their flame with rage, but these dragons have found a way to better conduct their fire. With platinum! If they use this ore, their rage slowly disappears because they no longer need it to fuel their fire! Thus causing them to be kinder."

Twilight nodded her head, "yes... Platinum ore is a natural spark maker, but it's rare. Say, Sapphire what about you? Did the dragons affect you with magic too?" she asked, looking expectantly.

I smiled and took a deep breath, focusing all my energy. I let it out, expecting a controlled ball of fire, a tiny whisp of fire flowed out. It was there one second and then *poof* it disappeared into a little bit of smoke

Twilight clapped her hooves. But I snorted annoyingly."Why won't it work?!" I huffed. Twilight placed her hoof on my shoulder, "that was great! It proves that a non-unicorn can still use magic!" she said excitedly.

I smiled. "but I still need to do something." I said. "I need some platinum..." I murmured awkwardly. Twilight blinked. "ok..." she said, leading me back downstairs. Spike followed close behind. "Can I have some platinum too?" he said hopefully.

FlutterShy and rarity stood on the bottom floor talking. Twilight cleared her throat and told rarity to find some platinum while FlutterShy told twilight her plan for nightmare night. Twilight agreed.

"Oh! Wait! What about us?" twilight gasped. "what do you mean?" Fluttershy asked. "what are WE gonna be for nightmare night? I was starswirled last year, and you hid in your cottage, and rarity was a... What were you exactly rarity?" twilight said.

"well if you must know, I was a mistress vampire of sorts. None of that gross blood-sucking, only a lady-like demeanor." rarity ranted. Twilight rolled her eyes as rarity started talking about the "beautifully stitched cobwebs that lined the skirt"... and blah blah blah...

"Then it's agreed!" twilight announced after much arguing, "I will be a scientist for nightmare night and rarity will be a queen." she said. "wait... Fluttershy, what are you gong as?" twilight asked.

Fluttershy ducked her head, "um... I was thinking... Maybe I could just... Stay here." she said in a quiet voice. Twilight sighed, "Fluttershy, you have to come! Don't you want to support our new friend?" Twi argued. "yes, B-But... Nightmare night is so scary!" she cried, hiding behind her long pink hair.

I felt sorry for Fluttershy, but I liked her. And wanted her to come. She was the most shy but was very gentle, something I couldn't see much with my huge dragon parents. "Please Fluttershy! I need you... Your too nice and caring to stay in your cottage all the time." I begged.

"Ok... I'll go. But I don't know what to be..." she said. We all thought about what she should go as. "A rabbit?" twilight suggested. "No a butterfly!" spike said. Fluttershy shook her head. Nobody said anything else.

"how about a zookeeper?" I suggested. Everypony looked at me, "why a zookeeper?" they asked. I ducked, I wasn't used to so many ponies looking at me. "Uh... So she could take some of her animal friends with her so won't be so scared." I said quietly. "Oh!" they all said.

Fluttershy seemed to like that idea, so we went with that. Spike crossed his arms, "I still think she should be a butterfly." he grumbled. "hey, what will you be spike?" rarity asked. "Huh... Gosh rarity. I don't know." he said, suddenly all light-hearted.

"well, I think you would look absolutely adorable in a jester costume! You could be my royal jester!" rarity suggested. "ok, whatever you say rarity..." spike sighed. Twilight rolled her eyes. "Alright! I will start your costumes right away!" she said, trotting towards the door.

Rarity suddenly stopped, "what about you Sapphire?" she asked. I shook my head, "I won't go as anything! I already look fit for nightmare night." rarity nodded and headed out. Spike started to float out the door after her, his tail twirling. I chuckled, you could just imagine little hearts floating along with him. But twilight stopped him before he could leave, "not you!"

Rarity stuck her head back in the library, "What about dash, pinkie, and applejack?" she asked. Twilight jumped up, "oh! I forgot! I'll go see, we have to introduce Sapphire to them anyway!" twilight ran past rarity and outside, "come on Sapphire! Rarity, I will check with them and report to you!"  
The sun was barely rising, it was officially nightmare's eve.


	12. Chapter 11

I ran alongside twilight as she rushed into the park. Nopony was awake at this time. "twilight! Where are we going? Do your friends live out in everfree forest too?" I called. Twilight shook her head, "no, but I'm sure rarity forgot your platinum with all that excitement about the costumes!"

We ran into the trees and up to a trail between the thick foliage. Twilight slowed down to a trot and we speed-walked into the forest.

I looked around, I visited this forest many times before. My parents would take me here to play and hunt sometimes. I miss them...

Twilight suddenly sped up, "almost there!" she called. I glanced ahead, a small cottage was tucked in the trees beside the narrow trail. It was odd, designs were carved into the door and a mask hung above it.

Twilight led me through the door and into the strange hut. Masks and bottles of medicine met met me as I entered. The herbs scented the air with a sharp minty smell.

I heard some footsteps and looked to see an odd pony with stripes and rings on her front legs. "ah, my dear Twilight. it's good to see you on this fine nightmare night." she greeted. Twilight turned to me, "this is Zecora, shes a zebra who makes medicine and spells." she explained.

Zecora looked shocked when she saw me. "I'm sorry, you took me by surprise. Twilight, who's your friend with the striking blue eyes?" she asked. Twilight stepped aside so I could fully enter the cottage. I gulped, Zecora is a bit odd too.

"Hi. Uh... I'm Sapphire." I stuttered. "well, hello dear friend. For what have you come, is there something I must mend?" Zecora asked. I shook my head. Twilight took over, "sorry, she's a little shy. We were wondering if you had any platinum ore?" twilight asked.

Zecora walked up to a shelf and began moving bottles and jars of minerals. "yes, I believe I do have some of that ore. But may I also ask what it is for?" Zecora asked as she handed me a small jar of the brown-grey mineral.

Before twilight could answer, I stuck a little chunk of platinum in my mouth and chewed. Zecora gasped, "Why in celestia's name are you eating that?! You'll get sick, give it back!" she took the jar before I could take more.

Zecora was mad but concerned. "explain if you please! This mineral is rare can't you see!" she said sternly. I was startled by Zecora's actions. "Uh... I..." I stammered. Twilight butted in, "Zecora, I'm sorry. I should have explained. Sapphire here is different if you can't already tell. She was raised by dragons to act like one." twilight explained.

Zecora snorted, "huh, but I haven't seen any dragons eating rocks before, no doubt. Or is there a plain fact I've gone without?" she huffed. "Z-Zecora, mam, some dragons chew platinum to spark and fuel their fire. It also helps them act calmer because they rely less on rage to help their fire." I explained (for the third time...)

Zecora still looked doubtful, "but you are not a dragon, and that was a rare item you just ate. Why not prove it and demonstrate?" she said suspiciously. I looked around, "but this is a wooden cabin, it would catch fire!" I said. Zecora shook her head, "I have water to fight the flames. If it does catch fire, you won't be to blame." she insisted.

"o-ok..." I said. "wait, you might as well make yourself useful. Could you light up this coal?" Zecora asked, pointing to a pile of charcoal under a cauldron. I walked slowly over, still afraid that I might do something to anger Zecora.

I bent down to the black material and took a breath. I focused my energy and... "OUCH!" I yelled, mid-flame. I bonked my head on the cauldron and lit my nose on fire. I whinnied and smothered my muzzle with my hooves to put it out.

I swung around to see what hurt me. I saw Zecora smiling with two dragon scales in her mouth. "what the heck Zecora?!" I yelled. "I could have burned my whole nose off!" Zecora spat the dark purple scales into a tiny bottle. "my apologies, dear friend. I needed dragon scales to postpone another's nearing end." Zecora said grimly.

I blinked, surprised. "W-Who?" I asked. "A dear friend of mine. She has gotten gravely sick before her time." Zecora explained, pointing to a bottle with a bubbling white liquid. "this medicine is a cure, but two ingredients are precious and rare. A dragon's scale and a cockatrice hair."

Twilight walked up to Zecora "oh, I'm so sorry. Have you found the other ingredient yet?" she asked. "I'm afraid not my dear. And my friend's untimely end draws near." Zecora said sadly. "hey! Fluttershy knows a cockatrice! She defeated one while protecting the cutie mark crusaders. I'm sure she could find him again and get you one!" twilight said.

Zecora looked at twilight, her eyes watering. "oh, many thanks to you and sapphire's dragon-like state. Now I must go, before it's too late!" she said. Zecora handed us the jar of platinum before rushing out the door to find fluttershy.


	13. Chapter 12

Twilight trotted ahead of me as I chewed the ore. It was in a very small jar held with a string that I looped around my neck for later. Twilight was yapping away, questioning me about the platinum and my fire. I explained a bit but my mind was somewhere else.

I looked at my wing, the purple scales glistening in the rising sun. Have I helped saved a pony's life? Would Zecora find the hair? Will the scale even work?! I'm not really a dragon after all... I shook my head, I gotta stay focused.

"so, twilight. Who are we going to meet first?" I asked. Twilight trotted a little faster, "we have to find rainbow dash first so she can help us clear the sky before nightmare night." twilight answered. I looked up, there were a few clouds but not very many.

"and how can she do that?" I asked. Twilight looked up too, "pegasi control the weather and clouds. You know, wind, rain, snow, and whatnot." she answered, scanning the sky. "they move the clouds around."

I scanned the sky, clouds were still floating across. "But, I thought this rainbow dash took care of it?" I wondered. Twilight gave a annoyed sigh, "yes, but she decided to take a nap first!" Twi said, pointing at a particularly fluffy white cloud.

I squinted, it was hard to see in such bright light. "Oh! I see her! She sure does live up to her name! Rainbow." I said after spotting a bit of the mare's mane. Twilight nodded.

"Hey! Rainbow!" twilight shouted. A snort sounded and a rainbow-maned cyan pony poked her head out from inside the cloud. "Oh! Hi twilight! Do you need anything?" the pegasus asked, fluttering down to the road where we stood.

"Yes, rainbow. You should be clearing the skies now!" twilight scolded. The rainbow pony only showed a flicker of guilt before she retorted with an excuse. "Fine! I'll get going with it then!" rainbow said, turning around and spreading her wings to fly.

"Wait! Before you go doing that, I have a new friend I want you to meet." twilight said quickly before dash could fly away. Rainbow sighed in frustration and turned back around. "what? You ask me to do one thing then you tell me to do another." dash complained.

"rainbow dash, this is Sapphire." Twilight said, pointing at me. I waved at the colorful pegasus. Rainbow's eyes widened, "wow! That's one awesome dragon costume! I'm going as daring do! But your not supposed to wear it until it's nighttime..." rainbow said.

"heh... Rainbow... She's not wearing a costume..." twilight said, giving an awkward laugh. "waddya mean? Did you hit your head or something?" dash wondered, confused.

I stepped closer to the flying cyan pony. "it's great to meet you rainbow dash. I heard that your the greatest flyer in ponyville." I said, trying to start a conversation. "as a matter if fact I am! I don't like to brag but, I'd consider myself the best in equestria!" rainbow dash boasted.

Twilight rolled her eyes, "yeah yeah. Anyway, you said you wanted to be daring do? I'll tell rarity so she can start making the costume!" she said before dash could go on about how fast she was. "and also, Sapphire really isn't wearing any costume." she added before walking away.

"wait, wait, wait..." dash said hurriedly. She flew over our heads and landed in front of us so we couldn't continue. "hold up, I don't get it. How can she NOT be wearing a costume?" dash persisted, obviously determined to know the answer.

Twilight sighed in annoyance. "Do I have to explain to everypony we meet?" she mumbled before continuing, "ok, dash, this is Sapphire-" "yeah, I know! You told me!" dash said, cutting her off. "LET ME FINISH!" twilight growled in frustration. why did rainbow dash have to be so hard headed?

"ok, as I was saying... Sapphire is new here, and as you can see," twilight said, motioning at me with a foreleg, "she's a bit different." Twi explained. "We will introduce her to the town tonight during the nightmare night celebration and we would like the sky to be clear by then." twilight finished, turning around to walk away again.

"Wait! Your not getting away that easily!" dash yelled, blocking our path yet again. "Can you even fly with those things?" dash said haughtily. I shrunk down at her "things" comment, but immediately stood up to face her. "Is that a challenge?" I said, making sure to growl the way I learned while living with dragons.

Dash tossed her head towards the clouds in the sky, "start at that first white cloud, then switch to the other, and then another in a triangle. First one back to the first cloud wins." dash said, flying up to the clouds she mentioned. I smiled, this will be fun!

~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~

Dash stood next to me on a cloud. she stretched her legs and spread her wings in preparation. I sat and waited for twilight's signal. I wasn't sure I'd win. in fact, I was almost certain I would loose! But it was all in good fun!

"Ready?" twilight called up to us. "set... GO!" Twi yelled. Dash took off like a rocket, with me right beside her. My huge powerful dragon wings propelled me forward with amazing speed, almost enough to match my opponent.

A rainbow trailed after dash, caused by her rainbow tail. I, however, cast an unusual trail. A purple streak with a dark blue fire-like whispy stripe inside.

We rocketed neck-in-neck until we reached the second cloud, I knew this would be difficult. I may be fast, but me large wings proved to be quite difficult with turns. I had already started slowing down for the turn about two thirds of the way. Dash took this chance to speed ahead.

I barely made the turn, my purple wing tip grazed the cloud as I swung around it. I quickly gained speed and caught back up with dash. "Not bad!" dash panted. I flicked my ear to show I had heard her, not wanting to break my focus.

The final turn came a little too quickly. I couldn't slow down fast enough and plowed right through the cloud, making it disintegrate. whisps of it trailed after me as I struggled to turn around.

I finally turned and shot towards the start. Dash was already halfway there! I tried to gain more speed, but I knew dash would win. Rainbow dash's hooves hit the fluffy cloud with a poof of white mist. After only a few heartbeats did mine reach it as well.

We both panted heavily after the race, exhausted. Dash patted me on the back. "You were amazing! Although the turns cut ya short, you were unbelievable. Who knew another pony out there was almost as good as me? Maybe even better..." dash said. I looked at her, a jokingly suspicious look in my eyes. Dash laughed, "ok, maybe not better but still pretty fast."

"Sorry to interrupt, but could you clear the skies now? I'll tell rarity what you'll be for nightmare night so she can make it. Come on Sapphire, we'd better move on." twilight called up at us. I flew down to her while rainbow dash took off to clear the skies.


	14. Chapter 13

"Next we must meet up with applejack. She's in charge of the nightmare night feast." twilight said as we walked. "Speaking of food, you eat gems, right? Well, I'll get rarity to find some if she has time. I'm sure both you and spike will be happy with emeralds, rubies, a few sapphires, and other not-as-precious crystals and gems. Is that alright?" twilight asked. I nodded, lost in my own thoughts.

We walked along a dirt road through some fields and orchards of various trees. But once an apple orchard came into view, it just seemed to stretch far larger than the others. "So many apples! How do they harvest them all?" I said in awe. Twilight laughed, "well applejack and her siblings are great at apple farming. I'm sure she'll explain."

We came upon a gate with an arched sign overhead. It read, "welcome to Sweet Apple Acres." I took a deep breath, "it does smell like apples!" I said. Twilight cocked her head, "it does?" she sniffed the air, "I guess so. I can't smell much. I guess your sense of smell is better than mine."

We trotted up to a huge red barn and a fairly large two-story house in the middle of the apple orchard. Some wildlife scampered around in the trees, nibbling on the fallen fruit. It was a nice place, pretty and peaceful.

Soon we approached the house and knocked on the door. A huge red pony answered the door. He had an odd harness or collar of sorts. "hi big Mac! Can we come in?" twilight asked cheerfully. "Eyup." he replied, stepping aside to let us in.

It was a nice home, decorated with apple-related objects that looked quite good on the walls... And tasty :3.

An old pony rocked in a chair in the living room. She looked quite wise. But that thought was cut off abruptly when the old pony called out, "APPLE JACK! YER FRIENDS ARE HERE!" she was so loud! Much louder than I expected for a pony of her age.

After my ears quit ringing, I heard a pony trot into the room. "hiya twilight! How are you doin'?" the orange pony said happily. Twilight gave her a smile. "hello applejack. I'm doing fine, how is the cooking going?" twilight said.

Suddenly, Applejack's mood shifted from happy to worried. "well, ya see... Our oven isn't working very properly at the moment. I haven't done much of the cooking, only the stuff I don't need the stove to make." applejack explained.

"well, that's too bad." twilight said, patting Applejack on the back. "it's ok, pinkie can make the rest!" Twi said, trying to cheer up her friend. "yeah... But then I would feel like I didn't do anything to help." Applejack argued.

Twilight sighed and looked at me. "Do you mind helping ANOTHER pony today?" she asked me. I shook my head, "it's fine. Besides I love to help!" I answered cheerfully. Twilight smiled and turned to look at Applejack, a sly glint in her eyes.

"Yeah! I can help you cook the food!" I said. Applejack looked happy, "can you fix the oven or something?" she asked. "Oh, where are my manners!" Applejack said, shaking her head, "I'm Applejack, its nice to meet such an interesting pony." she said, shaking my hoof.

"and you are?" Applejack asked. "I'm Sapphire, it's nice to meet you Applejack." I answered. Applejack smiled and walked into the kitchen. I followed.

The large kitchen was full of unfinished dishes and treats. Applejack sighed, "sorry about the mess." I walked around, looking at the food. "so... Which ones first?" I asked. Applejack pointed to a tray of small round pieces of bread. "those. They need to be baked soon or else they will grow stale!"

"Ok! What temperature and how long?" I asked. Applejack scratched her head, "90 degrees for five minutes... Why?" she said. I took a deep breath, imagining the temperature. oh... I hope I don't burn them... And blew a stream of fire.

Applejack gasped as the flame flickered above the food. A few minutes later, I stopped. The bread rolls were a golden brown. I lifted the pan and handed it to Applejack. She took it and examined them. "wow! That's some gift ya got there." she said.

This continued for a bout an hour until all the cooking was done. Applejack thanked us as me and twilight headed out the door. "wait, applejack." Twi said before we left, "what costume do you want to wear for nightmare night?"

"Oh, don't worry about that Twi. I've already sewed it up and got it ready to go! I'm going to be Johnny AppleBuck!" (Johnny Appleseed :P) applejack said. I waved my hoof as we left, "It was nice meeting you applejack!"


	15. Chapter 14

15-

"Ah! Here we are, Sugar cube corner!" Twilight announced, stopping in front of a colorful building. I looked up at the pink-splashed shop curiously. Twilight walked up to the door and knocked.

A light teal colored mare answered the door. She had a pink mane which was done up in a swirly-like fashion that reminded me of frosting.

"Twilight! What a pleasant surprise! You must want to see pinkie, yes?" the blue pony said cheerfully. "Yes please." Twilight replied. The pink-haired pony trotted a little ways up a flight of stairs, "Pinkie! You have guests!" she called. "She'll be down in a minute. Im going back into the kitchen with mr. Cake if you need anything!" the pony added as she walked through a door.

Suddenly, a hot-pink streak flew down the stairs and collided with Twilight. "Whaahh!" the unicorn gasped as she toppled to the floor. A bright pink fluffy-maned pony excitedly bounced around Twilight.

"I'm so happy your here twilight! Rainbow dash cane by and said that you were coming to sugarcube corner for my costume and introduce a new friend! I love meeting new ponies!" the pink pony said without stopping to breath.

"Well, I am here for your costume idea so Rarity can get started on it." Twilight said to the hopping pony. "Okey-dokey! I'm gonna be an ostrich this year! Like my chicken costume last year but tall and much more intimidating than a chicken!" Pinkie replied.

"Is this the new pony?" Pinkie pie said, suddenly appearing right next to where I sat. "woah!" I gasped, jumping back a bit. How did she get there? She was just talking to Twilight! Can she teleport?!

The pink pony snatched up my hoof and shook it rapidly. "Hiya! I'm pinkie pie, its so great to meet you! What's your name?" Pinkie said enthusiastically.

"I-I'm S-S-Sapphire!" I stuttered against the violent shaking.

"It's great to meet you, sapphire! I'm pinkie pie! Wait, I already said that!" She laughed.

I glanced questioningly at twilight. She shook her head and shrugged. "I don't know what goes on inside pinkie's mind either!" she whispered.

Pinkie let go of my hoof and sat with a massive grin on her face.

I looked around awkwardly. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing! I'm just waiting is all." the pink pony replied.

"For... What?"

"I don't know! I just thought you would be interesting!" pinkie giggled.

Twilight suddenly pushed herself between us. I sighed thankfully and gave Twilight a grateful look.

"Okay, pinkie. I'll tell Rarity and she'll make the costume. But we gotta go now, there's lots to do. And besides, you need to start making the nightmare night cake!" Twilight interrupted.

"Okey-Dokey-lokey!" Pinkie said. She gave twilight her best mock-salute and bounced off into the kitchen.

"Whew... Pinkie is one of the more mysterious ponies I know. I have no idea why she does things or what she thinks. She can chat with somepony till the cows come home. Let's just be thankful that we escaped with our lives!" Twilight laughed.

The lavender pony trotted out the door and into the bright sunlight. I followed her without another word, a hidden smile on my face.

That was the first pony who accepted me immediately without question. Maybe I can fit in after all!

(sorry that was a short chaper!)


	16. Chapter 15

Twilight and I arrived at carousel boutique and let ourselves in.

"Rarity! You here?" Twilight called.

"in here darling! I'm working on your costumes! They are coming along quite nicely!" came the reply.

I followed the lavender unicorn down a hallway. Twilight opened a door at the end and entered a large room. Shelves towered along the walls, filled with fabric of all kinds.

Rarity was busy trotting about carrying cloth and string. Six pony mannequins were lined up neatly in the front of the room, three of them were already clothed.

One had a beautiful light pinkish-purple and white dress adorned with jewels and lace. A large fancy crown sat atop the mannequin's head. That must be Rarity's queen costume.

Another was a blue uniform with a butterfly net in a leather pouch draped over the mannequin's shoulder. It had a little name tag that read "Fluttershy."

Rarity worked on the third, a white lab coat. She was expertly stitching a pocket into the side. a little plastic pencil holder was being fitted into the newly-made pocket. It had pens and some vials with a green substance, to look like potions, inside.

"Come on in, twilight! Oh and sapphire, could you stand here for a bit?" Rarity chirped, tapping a jeweled stool with a sewing needle she was levitating.

"Uh... Okay..." I murmured, obeying the white unicorn and stepping up onto the stool.

"May I ask what I'm supposed to be doing? I'm not going to wear anything to nightmare night..." I asked sheepishly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you! Our little meet-up yesterday inspired me to make a series outfits! I'll call it, The Heart's Fire! Like it? I thought of that just now, actually!" Rarity said happily.

I nodded and stayed on the stool. Rarity was finishing up Twilight's scientist costume, adding a pair of glasses and a name tag. Twilight told rarity the other three ponies' costume ideas as I waited for Rarity to finish.

"Alright! Done! Sorry to keep you waiting, Sapphire!" Rarity chirped. She turned around and faced me.

Twilight trotted up to the lab coat and studied it. "It looks great rarity!" She commented.

"Thank you! Anyway. Sapphire, dear, could you turn around for a second?" Rarity commanded.

I obeyed and turned to the side. Rarity levitated a measuring tape and measured me. "Hm... Your chest is broader than most mares... Probably due to the whole fire-breathing..." Rarity murmured. "Speaking of fire, I should probably use fire-proof fabric..."

Rarity trotted away and started taking cloth from the shelves. "Sapphire, you can step off for the moment."

I sighed in relief and got off. I was tempted to eat the emeralds that decorated the stool! I was hungry AND homesick...

Twilight must have noticed my hunger. She got up and opened a chest that was next to a wide window.

"hey, Rarity?" twilight called as she dug through the box.

"Hmm?"

"Can sapphire have some of these?" Twilight replied, holding out a hoof. A little pile of gems sparkled on it. My mouth watered, Emeralds! My favorite!

"Oh? Of course, darling! After all, I forgot to find her some gems earlier today!" Rarity answered, glancing at twilight.

The lavender pony levitated the pile of gems over to me. I took them happily and thanked Rarity. She waved a hoof at me instead of answering. The white unicorn was busy cutting fabrics and stitching them together.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After a while of working, Rarity turned around and showed me what she made so far.

She levitated a blue dress base. It wasn't decorated yet, but it was beginning to take shape.

It was made from a silky blue cloth that shimmered in the light. The skirt flowed gracefully out and was tipped with a purple trim, a curly design was traced on the edge.

"Wow! Rarity that looks beautiful!" I said in awe. "You have a real gift!"

"Thanks, but it was only because of you that I got the idea in the first place!" Rarity said, turning back around and continued working.

"Oh! Wait, I almost forgot!" Rarity suddenly gasped. She turned around, holding her tape measure in her mouth.

"Sapphire, dear, could you please allow me to measure your wingspan?" Rarity asked.

"Oh! Yes, please do. I would like to see." Twilight added excitedly. "I want to study the size-weight ratio of a dragon. But since spike doesn't have wings, and I don't have another dragon to ask, it would be interesting to me."

"O-Okay..." I said sheepishly.

I spread my blue-and-purple wings to their full wingspan. The two ponies' eyes grew wide at the size. My wingtips nearly touched both walls beside me with only a few feet to spare. Compared to a pegasus's wings, mine are three times the size of a normal pegasus wingspan.

Rarity measured them and showed twilight the length.

"Ten feet! Geez! That's bigger than an eagle!" Twilight exclaimed.

"I-Is that bad?" I squeaked.

Twilight swiveled around in surprise, "Heavens no! It's amazing! Why would it be bad?" She asked.

I ducked my head, "I can't fly indoors like fluttershy... And if I try, it'd make a mess and blow everything away!" I squeaked shamefully.

"Sapphire! Don't say things like that. I think your wings look beautiful!" Rarity argued.

"R-Really?"

"Of course! They are unlike anything I've ever seen. And besides, purple and blue go together very nicely." She huffed. "Now then, let's get on with that dress."

~~~~~~~~~Squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~

"Done!" Rarity announced.

She held up a beautiful midnight blue dress. It had a long skirt that glittered with specs of silver. The neck of the dress was decorated with sapphires fitted into the collar. The blue gems also dotted the edge of the skirt. (It looked fit for a certain princess of the night :3)

"Ta-Da! Isn't it wonderful? It only took me four hours!" Rarity said, beaming with pride.

"Wow! Its beautiful!" I gasped, eyes wide.

Rarity folded it up and placed it into a white box. She then levitated it to me and dropped it at my hooves.

"What are you doing?" I asked In surprise

"Its for you, darling!"

"Oh... Um... Wait one moment.." I mumbled.

I reached my hoof into my blue saddle bag and pulled out my pouch of gems. I poured four sparkling diamonds from the little bag onto my hoof.

"Here." I said, handing the gems to Rarity.

She looked confused for a moment. Rarity just stared at the jewels before pushing them away.

"You don't understand, darling. I'm giving you the dress, free of charge!" she laughed.

"Really? Are you sure? B-But... Okay.. Thank you." I stammered.

"Of course! Consider it a gift among friends."

I put the gems back into the pouch and tightened the drawstring.

"Now then, Let's see if I can get these costumes finished before sunset!" Rarity sighed.

She still had two costumes to make! An ostrich and a Daring Do, whatever that was.

"Can we help?" I asked.

Rarity turned around, "why, yes! That would be great! Thank you!" She said happily.

With that, twilight and I began to collect fabric and supplies as rarity instructed.


	17. Chapter 16

"Finally! Done!" Twilight gasped.

The three of us had finished the two costumes just when the sun began to set.

The daring do outfit was easy, but the ostrich was pretty difficult. Rarity insisted upon using realistic fake feathers instead of fake fabric ones. We had to build stilts and a beak that would match up with the body.

But eventually we finished. The ostrich costume was an impressive realistic yet cartoon-like bird, made to fit on a pony of course.

I sneezed and a grey feather floated into the air. We laughed and began to clean up.

The three of us stood and studied the six costumes. The first was a little jester costume for spike, made to match Rarity's queen outfit. The second was a zookeeper's uniform for Fluttershy. The third was a replica of Daring Do's clothes for Rainbow Dash. The fourth was a simple lab coat with a pair of glasses for twilight. And the fifth was the ostrich for pinkie.

Rarity was already wearing her dress, prancing around. Spike had arrived a little while ago and just stood and stared at the white unicorn.

Suddenly, the boutique door slammed open. Rainbow dash flew inside, followed by pinkie pie, fluttershy, and applejack.

"we're here!" Rainbow called.

"Dash! Please lower the volume! Use your indoor voice." Rarity scolded the cyan Pegasus.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Rainbow mumbled. "Where's our costumes?"

"They're in here, I hope you are pleased with the results." Rarity replied.

The four ponies walked up to the mannequins and started to put their costumes on.

Applejack sat in the corner of the room instead of getting a costume. She was wearing an old-styled shirt that a poor pony would have worn int the pioneer days. She had a potato-sack bag draped around her neck that was full of apple seeds. A frying pan sat atop her head.

"Applejack! What in the name of Celestia are you wearing?!" Rarity exclaimed.

Applejack rolled her eyes, "I'm dressed as an ancestor of mine, Johnny AppleBuck. So shut yer yap bout' it." she replied rather rudely.

Rarity gasped and turned her back to the orange pony. "Hmph!"

~~~~~~ squiggles~~~~

"Wow, Rarity! This daring do costume is awesome!" Dash said as she finished putting it on. She even wrapped a bandage around one wing like daring do in the first book.

"I knew you would like them!" Rarity chirped. "What does everyone else think?"

"Cool. I love it. It's awesome, yes indeedy!" they each replied.

"Alright!" Announced Twilight, "The nightmare night decorations are probably being set up just about now. We should go and help!"

(Short chapter, sorry)


	18. Chapter 17

The moon was up by the time all the vendors, booths, and games were set up. Ponies of all sorts of colors and costumes began to leave their homes and join the festival.

"There's Pip! I'm gonna go join him for trick-or-treating!" Pinky squawked.

The ostrich-pony began to stride towards a group of fillies and colts. The leader of them was a little brown colt who was wearing a knight costume.

"Hey Pip! Ooh, nice costume! Mind if I join you guys?" Pinkie asked the colt-knight.

"Of course pinkie! It wouldn't be nightmare night without you!" The pony called Pip said.

With that, pinkie walked away with the herd of little ponies. She towered above them on her ostrich stilts. She was even walking on her back legs.

~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~

Rainbow, applejack, rarity, and spike went their separate ways, with spike following rarity of course.

"Come on, Sapphire. Let's have some fun!" Twilight called over her shoulder as she trotted into the crowd of ponies. Fluttershy followed me as I trailed after Twilight.

Fluttershy had her bunny, Angel, in a soft cloth bag Rarity made for her. The little bunny's head stuck out, a displeased expression on it's face.

Twilight lead me towards a staged area where many ponies gathered. The mayor was standing near the curtain wearing a ridiculous pumpkin costume.

"We have a special announcement from Twilight Sparkle that will be held shortly. But for now, enjoy the food and treats provided by Sweet Apple acres and Sugarcube corner!" The greyish-tan colored pony announced to the crowd. At that, the ponies departed to take part in the festivities.

I looked at twilight questioningly. She smiled, "I arranged for an announcement on the stage."

"For what?" I asked.

Twilight smiled slyly, "For you..." she laughed.

I gagged, "M-Me? No... Uh... I can't! I can't stand having so many ponies staring at me!" I whimpered, sinking to the ground and covering my ears with my hooves.

Fluttershy gasped and rushed over to me. "Twilight!" The yellow pony scolded, "If she doesn't want to do it, then she doesn't have to! It really can be scary up there!" Fluttershy stroked my mane reassuringly.

Twilight sat down next to me. "Oh come on, Sapphire! It's not that hard! All you gotta do is introduce yourself. Say, 'Hi! I'm Sapphire, the new pony in ponyville!'" the lavender unicorn said, waving her hoof in the air as if to push away the ridiculous thought of stage fright.

"And I'll take care of the rest!" Twilight finished.

"Y-You will?" I murmured, looking up at the unicorn.

"Sure! But you gotta do it, okay?" Twilight said gently.

I stood up and shook the dirt from my pelt and sniffed. "Okay... I'll try." I mumbled.

Fluttershy looked at me with happiness and... Pride? Why was she proud of me? I'm still a scaredy-cat when it comes to social activities.

"Alright then! How about you girls go off and have fun while I set everything up?" Twilight announced cheerfully.

~~~~~~~~Squiggles~~~~~~~~

I trotted off into the festival grounds, gently pushing past ponies as they walked about. "E-Excuse me... Pardon me miss..." I murmured. My wings were tightly tucked to my side so I don't bump anypony. My wings don't have fluffy feathers after all.

I walked around and observed the vendors' merchandise as I wandered. I wasn't really going anywhere purposely. In fact, I was just trying to pass the time before the announcement Twilight was going to make.

I felt more and more scared by the minute, I can't go up there in front of all those ponies... What if I get rejected again? I don't think I could handle that... Knowing that I could cause so much fear among these creatures that I knew nothing about before I came here. And now I was supposed to live with them!

As I thought about the approaching announcement, tears began welling up in my deep blue eyes. I sniffled and sat down under a tree at the far side of the town square.

~~~~~~~ sad squiggles :( ~~~~~~~

"SAPPHIRE!" A loud, high-pitched voice rang in my ears. I wiped the tears from my eyes.

I turned around and instantly saw a furry grey torpedo flying towards me. I gasped in shock as it crashed into me, toppling my body onto the grass.

I felt little pointy hooves scrambling over me. I groaned in pain and looked up at the assailant.

HailStone was happily hopping on top of me, his little storm cloud-grey wings fluttering.

"Hail!" I gasped happily despite the pain of little dancing pony hooves on my chest. He wore a bright red cape that was draped down his back, flailing around.

"Sapphire! I finally found you again!" The Pegasus laughed.

"Yeah, it's great to see you too... Ow... C-Could you please get offa me?" I winced.

"Oh! Sorry." Hail gasped, scrambling away from me.

I picked myself up and shook blades of grass from my fur. "Hail, it's so great to see you!" I said happily, ruffling the colt's ice-blue mane with my hoof.

Hail wriggled away and grinned up at me. He turned around and looked towards a clump of bushes.

"Come on guys! This is who I've been telling you about!" Hail called, waving his hoof.

Three little ponies poked their heads out of the bush and nervously crawled out. There was a brown Pegasus, a dark red Pegasus, and a magenta earth pony.

The ponies approached me with wide eyes. The magenta earth pony was the only girl in the group.

"Come on guys, she won't bite!" Hail said in an annoyed voice.

"Hi there, are you friends with Hail?" I greeted nicely. The three young ponies nodded.

I smiled, "Well its nice to know that he has so many friends." I said.

"Maroo? Sasha? Iode? Hail? Where'd you all go?" a familiar high-pitched voice suddenly called.

"What?" Hail shouted back, turning towards the noise.

Pinkie Pie trotted over, leading a troop of fillies and colts. "There you are!" the pink pony giggled. "I see you've met Sapphire! Isn't she great?"

"Yeah..." Hail said, looking around at all the ponies. "Is it time to go trick-or-treating already?" He whined.

"Yep! And we'd better get going before somepony else eats all the candy!" Pinkie squeaked joyfully. She turned around and began to walk back into the town square.

Hail sighed and followed. "See ya later, sapphire..." He said, waving a hoof.

I waved back and smiled, watching my friends walk away.

~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~

I walked around alone in the park. 'Its probably about the time Twilight said when she made arrangements onstage. But... I'm still afraid to go back...' I thought.

I laid down in a patch of moonlit grass with a sigh. I crossed my front hooves and rested my chin on them, beginning to think about what I should do.

It wasn't necessarily stage fright that had me nervous... I was afraid of rejection. It's happened all to often...

But then I began to think of all that has been happening lately. I met my new friends... Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Apple Jack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Hail... They've all supported me! And now Twilight was trying to help me even more...

I have to go, even though I risk rejection, it was the least I could do after all my friends have done!

I stood up and took a deep breath. My deep blue eyes sparkled with determination, all fear was gone.

"I'll do it!" I announced triumphantly at nothing in particular.

As soon as the words left my mouth, my sharp ears picked up a sound...

A terrifying sound... A scream.

"H-Help!" I heard it again! It was louder now and full of terror.

But I couldn't act, I couldn't run towards the sound. My legs seemed frozen to the ground. I recognized that voice...

HAIL!

(muahhhaaa! cliffhanger! i'm so evil :) anyway, this chapter is to make up for all the short chapters before this one. and that massive chapter mistake... i skipped a whole chapter! sorry about that!

also, the story is past it's slow boring beginning stage. it will become more fast-paced and action-y nao!


	19. Chapter 18

"HAIL!" I shouted, all of my fear was gone. I reared up onto my back legs and kicked my front hooves in the air as I let out a terrifyingly ferocious roar. A rather dragon-like shriek of fury.

My strong purple legs were a blur as I sprinted towards the sound. I could hear other screams now, all were from young fillies and colts. I ran faster, keeping my head low and my wings firmly tucked to my side stop wind resistance.

I was nearing town square, the sounds of terrified adults and children could be heard from within.

Although my eyes burned with determination and fury, my heart still hammered with fear. but not from stage fright, I was afraid of what I would find when I arrived.

Were Hail and the others okay? Oh dear Celestia, please let them be.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~

I jumped over a vendor's booth and landed in the town square. I slowly and fearfully opened my eyes to whatever horrible scene lay before me.

I saw a huge group of ponies huddled together against a building. Pinkie had her head rammed into the dirt with her hindquarters sticking up into the air like an frightened ostrich. The others stared up at something above them in terror.

I reluctantly cast my gaze upward let out a gasp. I seemed to loose my ability to breath at what I saw.

A massive blood-red creature flew above the ponies. it's huge wings were jagged and dragon-like. But they seemed to never stir the air as they flapped.

The creature of which these wings were attached to was a horrifying beast. A... Dragon... No, not a dragon. I have never seen a dragon like this!

It had no arms or legs, only a thick, simple, serpentine body. It's massive head was odd, it had black eye sockets with a tiny dark red pupil that glowed menacingly.

The beast's mouth was agape, filled with jagged teeth. But these teeth didn't look like normal fangs. They looked to be made up of the same material as the rest of it, an odd, smooth, hard flesh that glowed red like it's eyes.

The fangs seemed to be attached to it's face in general, as if they grew from the side of it's mouth instead of within. They looked like the two horns that grew from the back of the dragon's head, mere triangular spikes.

The whole beast's body flickered and warped like a hologram, always changing, always jagged and menacing. Static sparked along it's skin, but it's eyes were unfazed. The red pupils stared with an evil gaze, filled with such hate and malice.

The dark beast smiled a jagged grin at the ponies below it. But he was staring at one pony in general... Hail.

The poor grey Pegasus stood in front of the group of ponies, staring up at the dragon in terror. He seemed to be frozen, his legs trembled but they couldn't move. Hail was trapped in the beast's horrible red gaze.

"HAIL!" I screeched.

I leaped into the air and landed in front of the cowering ponies. I quickly stepped between Hail and the beast, blocking the terrified pony from the dragon's gaze.

As soon as Hail's eyes were separated from the beast's, he began to stir. The colt gasped and scrambled back into the cowering huddle of ponies.

The dragon seemed surprised at my act, his black eyes blinked once but soon regained their malice. Immediately the beast locked eyes with me, trying to freeze me like he did to Hail.

I stood my ground. my wide defensive stance didn't waver, my eyes stayed sharp and clear. The beast blinked again in surprise. He didn't know why his trance didn't work on me.

The beast's eyes took on a look of boredom. He turned his head back to Hail, who was standing on the outside of the group.

Hail looked up and saw the dragon, his eyes were immediately flushed of all emotions other than fear. His legs shook and all he could do was stare at the beast.

The dragon began to advance on the little grey pegasus. Hail squeaked but couldn't move.

A roar erupted from my throat, loud and very dragon-like. I leaped between the colt and the monster again. The beast moved back in shock and stared at me angrily.

Dragon instinct took hold of me. I let out a low growl and took a step towards the beast, swinging my head and "clawing" at the ground. This was a dragon's way of saying, "Get the heck outta here before I torch your nose off."

The red dragon ignored my warning and tried to go around me to get to Hail and the others.

I immediately acted upon the move, snarling and blocking the beast's path. This time I gnashed my teeth and charged at the red creature. It easily dodged the attack, understanding fully that it was simply a warning.

The dragon continued to stare at me in confusion. He was confused as to what I was. I acted like a strong dominant dragon but looked like puny weak pony.

I kept my gaze on the beast, watching for any further movement. An animal was supposed to leave at this point. If it didn't, I was to charge at the animal again.

So I did. And again the holographic beast dodged. But the monster simply looked annoyed, not threatened in the least.

The dragon started growling. I gasped in pain as my ears seemed to catch fire. The shriek was terribly disturbing, a high pitched and warped cry.

I quickly regained my stance and growled a warning, "Stay away from my treasure." is what I snarled to the beast. It was in ancient dragon speak, only understandable to another dragon.

I said treasure because it was an existing word in the language, and i did feel as though these ponies were my "Eoulda," meaning, "treasures."

There was no word for "Family" or "Friends" in dragon speak. Dragons never really stayed together for long. The only word close to Family was "Gigguru," meaning "Offspring or Wife"

This speech issue is what caused most dragons to learn the most diverse language among the kingdoms, Pony language. It had more than double the amount of words than in dragon speak.

The beast was thoroughly shocked at what I said. He never expected a pony to speak the tongue of the dragons.

The red creature still flew above me, showing no signs of retreat. 'Okay, now I'm pissed...' I growled under my breath.

I switched from warnings to defense and started to advance towards the holographic beast.

I snarled and reared onto my hind legs, spreading my purple-and-blue wings to their full length and flapped them in one last warning. It was obvious to the beast that I was going to attack him.

But the monster's eyes took on a look of amusement. He thought it was funny! He must think that I'm bluffing! That I can't really defend myself!

The beast snorted amusement and actually started to fly over me to reach it's meal, the ponies. I roared a battle cry and leaped into the air, strait into the red dragon.

I gasped in shock as my body went strait through the beast's static-flecked form as if it was air. I landed on the ground and turned back to the monster.

I stared in disbelief at where I has jumped through his body. There was only a static-y ripple before it smoothed back into the holographic form of the beast.

He was cackling in the high-pitched warped tone that he spoke in.

The beast's wing suddenly swung towards me. it's color became darker as it neared me. I gasped in pain and shock as the wing slammed into my chest, sending me toppling onto my side.

'H-How...? It's body was like air or water! How could it physically attack me?! That's just unfair!' I thought. My rage built as the beast laughed and cackled at me.

I tried to keep my sanity, but my calm pony stature snapped. Only pure dragon instinct took my mind.

I let out a raged roar and took to the skies, my wings forming a dust cloud. The wind currents my wings made seemed to warp the holographic monster's body slightly as if he was a denser form of air.

My eyes were filled with fiery rage as I swooped into the beast. Again my body passed through his ghost-like form, a flickering hole was there for a second before it closed.

The beast cackled more. his black eyes mocked me. 'don't look at me... Don't laugh at me...' my thoughts screamed. "DON'T LAUGH AT ME!" I screeched aloud.

I opened my fanged mouth and spewed a stream of flame at the cackling beast. His laughing instantly changed to shrieks of fear and pain.

I stared at his body, it had a massive jagged tear in it's holographic form as if it was cut from paper. The beast shrieked again in terror.

The "wound" did not heal itself until my fire faded from the air and it grew dark again. The beast looked at me in rage and disbelief.

Light! The light hurts it!

I blew another ball of flame, strait into the center of the beast. It screeched again as the light from the fire tore a gaping hole in it's body. The rest of it seemed to disintegrate just like a dying flame, whisps of faded blood-red hologram floated into the air and disappeared.

And with one last shriek, the beast was gone.

~~~~~~~~chapter end squiggles~~~~~~~~

(Finally! I introduced an enemy in this story! The whole thing goes uphill from here. Up in action, less dialogue, and more interaction with the whole pony world besides ponyville! In addition, i am introducing a slight conflict between the dragon and pony side of Sapphire. Kinda like a self-conflict thing. And I'm also adding a new OC soon... :3 I will give you a hint, his name starts with Z. Learn the alphabet, K? Jk, I'm kidding!)


	20. Chapter 19

I stayed in the air, panting from exhaustion and fading adrenaline. The ponies below me cheered once the danger was gone.

Twilight stepped forward from the group of ponies. "Sapphire! That was amazing!" she called up to me.

I heard twilight's voice, but it wasn't familiar. A fiery haze lined my vision as I hovered high above the ground. My energy was fading fast, drained from the magic I used while breathing fire.

I turned to look at whatever spoke to me. I saw twilight... But I didn't see my friend, I didn't recognize her. My vision was blurry and blackened as I fought to stay conscious.

The purple pony on the ground called up to me again. But I couldn't understand what she said, it sounded fuzzy.

I tried to shake my head to clear the confusion, but that only left me with a headache. Only one feeling was clear to me, I was trying to protect something.

I looked down at the unicorn on the ground and growled defensively. I wasn't sure what I was trying to protect, but this pony was intruding.

The pony stopped and looked up at me in surprise as I growled at her. "What's the matter?" she called.

continued to growl at the pony. "Datsu Fa Yun Eoulda!" I snarled from above in dragon speak.

*("Stay away from my treasure" is what that means. the word away is not in dragon speak. "Mau" is closest to "away," meaning "to leave" or simply meaning to "take action")*

The unicorn continued to stare up at me in confusion.

"Yun Mau Katsah!" I growled.

*(I'm going to attack)*

I was shaking my head to try and stay conscious

"Sapphire! Calm down, your hurt!" Twilight called, concerned about me.

"Yun... Ma...u... Ka-" I murmured. My vision went black and I fell from the sky.

~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~

(I just barely thought of making up a language for the dragons! I'm actually writing these words down so they WILL be accurate when they are repeated in future dragon dialogue. Also, should I make a sort of dictionary with the words? A reference guide for anybody who wants to use my ancient dragon language in their stories.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~~

POV: 3rd

Sapphire flapped her wings to stay in the air, the strokes getting weaker and weaker with each beat.

"Yun Mau Katsah!" the pony snarled angrily.

Her eyes were different... The black reptile-like pupils weren't dilated or wide. They were usually thick and welcomingly full of emotion. But now they was a mere slivers of black in a sea of deep blue, blocking all feeling but a threatening glare.

"Sapphire! Calm down, your hurt!" Twilight called up to the dragon-pony.

The Pegasus ignored Twilight's concern and continued to growl weakly. "Yun... Ma...u..." Sapphire whimpered, her flight was already clumsy and staggering.

The purple pegasus's wings faltered and she started to plummet to the earth.

"Sapphire!" Twilight gasped.

She sprinted forwards the falling pony and caught her before she hit the ground.

"Sapphire? Are you alright?" Twilight murmured.

The other ponies gathered around. Fluttershy pushed through the crowd (rather harshly) and came forward. The yellow pegasus examined Sapphire for any signs of major injury but found none.

"She'll be okay, Twilight. She's just exhausted." Fluttershy said.

Twilight sighed in relief and carefully placed the unconscious pony on the ground. She looked up at the sky where that beast disappeared.

"Whatever that thing was, I don't want it to come back." Twilight said.

(sorry, short chapter)


	21. Chapter 20

POV: Sapphire

"Ugh... What happened?" I murmured groggily.

I opened my eyes and harsh sunlight filled my vision. I looked around, I was on a bed inside the library.

I tried to get out of the bed, but when I did, I felt a sharp pain in my chest. I gasped and fell back into the soft mattress. I guess that monster broke a few ribs when he hit me.

Hoofsteps sounded on the floor below, racing up the stairs. Twilight trotted into the room with spike on her back.

"Sapphire! Your awake!" Twilight said happily. She then turned her head towards the stairwell, "She's awake!"

A scrambling of hooves could be heard as five ponies came bundling upstairs. Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie pushed past Twilight and ran up to me.

"Yay! Your alright!" pinkie squealed.

"You had us worried!" Fluttershy cooed.

"That was AWESOME! Do ya think you can teach me to fight like that?" Rainbow exclaimed.

"Darling, don't go scaring us like that!" Rarity gasped dramatically.

"Fer once I gotta agree with miss diva over here, you need to be more careful." Applejack said.

The chatter stopped when Twilight pushed her way to the front. The ponies were hushed as they waited for Twilight to speak.

"Sapphire... What happened that night?" She asked grimly.

"I'd like to know that as well." I said bluntly.

"So... You don't remember? What exactly DO you remember from nightmare night?" Twilight questioned.

I bowed my head in thought, letting my messy mane fall in front of my face.

"A huge monster... Was attacking you guys. I was so afraid that I couldn't think! But I tried to protect them anyway." I started.

"But then my mind became a bit... Fuzzy, I couldn't think strait. I remember warning that creature to back off, but when it didn't I attacked. The last thing I remember clearly was when the monster hit me. Then my mind became completely clouded and my memories after that are vague and transparent." I finished.

Twilight looked frustrated, shaking her head and muttering something under her breath.

"Then what was it that you did to destroy that thing? I'm worried that's not the last time we'll see it..." she rambled.

Yeah... How did I do it? All I remembered was a clouded image of fire and a muffled shriek. I dug through my memories to try and find the missing information.

But the deeper I got, the more painful my headache became. It soon grew unbearable and I had to stop thinking immediately.

"I-It hurts... I can't remember." I whimpered, cradling my head in my hooves.

Twilight sighed in frustration but didn't ask me to try again.

"Could you at least tell me what you said? It was an odd language I have never heard of before, but that beast understood it. What the hay was that thing anyway?" Twilight asked.

"It's called Dragon speak or just dragon language... Its the ancient language of the elder dragons my parents taught me. I'll tell you about it later." I explained.

At least I could tell her that. But it didn't surprise me that I remembered the language. I couldn't remember only what happened last night, but I knew how to speak Dragon ever since I was a filly.

"Anyway, I have informed the princesses of what happened. They will be sending me a reply shortly." Twilight said, trying to change the subject.

As if on cue, Spike burped a ball of green flame. I watched as a scroll materialized from the fire and landed on the floor.

"Ah! Right on time!" twilight announced. She levitated the scroll from the floor up to her face so she could read.

"Dear Twilight, the attack you experienced last night is one of many conflicts we have had against these creatures. They are a unknown and mysterious species that has never been seen before. We call them "Static Shadows." From what we have collected, we can conclude that these creatures are dangerous and extremely hostile. Take great cation if you see one. Take care twilight, I will await your reply." The lavender unicorn read aloud.

Twilight threw the scroll away, her face showed her confusion and worry.

"So these things have been attacking all over Equestria?! Why didn't Celestia tell me this sooner!" She snorted in annoyance.

Twilight levitated a quill and began to write on a piece of parchment. "Dear princess Celestia, I was not informed that these attacks have been taking place. I ask you to please tell me any future information on the subject and what is your plan of action?" she said aloud as she wrote.

Twilight rolled up the scroll and bound it with a red ribbon. Spike took the letter and burned it. The ashes swirled into a single point and then vanished in a tiny flicker of light.

"What now?" Pinkie asked impatiently.

"We wait." Twilight replied plainly.

"..."

A burp sounded with a flash of green light. Another scroll materialized from Spike's flame. Twilight lifted the letter and cleared her throat.

"Dear Twilight, I understand your concern but I assure you that the situation is under control. But I will do what you have asked and tell you. I have discussed the issue with Luna and we believe that we need more information before we act."

"But unfortunately, there are very few books about dragons at all. So Luna and I have agreed to send somepony to the dragon kingdom to deliver a message and gather information. However, no pony has accepted the job as messenger! Even the royal guard is reluctant to travel to such a dangerous place. I would like to know your suggestion on this matter." Twilight read.

The unicorn looked strait at me with a sly smirk. I cowered slightly at her gaze. I knew what she was going to say...

"Sapphire?" Twilight said plainly, not asking the whole question.

"Nothing else to do... So why not..." I sighed, nodding my head.

Twilight smiled and began writing on another piece of paper. "Dear princess Celestia, I know of a perfect pony for the job..." she said aloud, trailing off into a mumble as she wrote.

Once the letter was finished, Spike burned it to send it to the princesses.

Their reply soon came. Twilight read it eagerly. "Dear Twilight, This is wonderful news! I was afraid that we might have had to go to war with the Dragon Kingdom if this Static Shadow issue wasn't solved. I will arrange the departure from Ponyville later this week." she said.

"W-War?!" I gasped in horror.

"Don't worry! the princess must mean that if the dragons have anything to do with the attacks or are the ones causing it, they will go to war." Twilight reassured. But There seemed to be a note of exaggeration in her voice that worried me.

"Well then. We'd better get ready..." Twilight sighed.

"But what do we need-" I said.

A strange noise interrupted my words. It was a fluttering of wings. But not Pegasus wings... They sounded like a dragon's!

A shadow covered the open window that had shed light into the top floor, enveloping the room in darkness. We looked up and saw a ghastly shape appear in the window frame, a shadowy dragon-like shape with red-colored eyes...

"It's a Static Shadow!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles of chapter endingness~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Jeez, I've been posting cliffies all over today! anyway, do you think i should keep the dragon language? or should it go? also, i like what i named those monster thingies, Static Shadows. :3 i think its a cool name)


	22. Chapter 21

"It's a Static Shadow!" Rarity cried, falling to the ground dramatically.

Twilight stepped in front of her friends, her horn glowing with a magenta aura. She aimed her horn at the beast, and shot a beam of magic.

The shape was enveloped in the sparkling aura, flailing around as it was lifted into the air by the magic.

"Wait! S-Stop! What are you doing?!" a rough voice shrieked.

"You won't hurt anypony today! Not again!" Twilight yelled, her horn glowing brighter.

"Wait!" I snapped at Twilight. I slowly approached the dark figure.

The unicorn looked confused. "What in the hay are you doing?! Your already hurt! You can't fight that thing!" she argued.

"P-Please let me go! I'm innocent! Somepony, HELP!" the growling voice cried. It sounded like a young male dragon.

"Let him go, Twilight!" I growled. I was sure to keep myself between my friends and the mysterious creature.

"Okay..." Twilight said warily, slowly releasing her hold on the shape.

The figure yelped as the levitation spell was gone, dropping him into the wooden floor.

"Ow... My head..." the creature groaned.

I walked over to the window and re-opened the blinds, flooding the room with light.

All eight of us gasped as the light revealed the creature's appearance. He was a young male blue-and-yellow dragon who was no bigger than me (if not smaller).

No wonder we mistook him for a Static Shadow! He's got no front arms, just like the Shadows. Only two massive wings and strong back legs.

The dragon groaned again and reached one if his folded wings to his head and rubbed it. "Jeez... You could have been more gentle!" he hissed.

The dragon's wings were unlike any others I have seen before! The main "arm" bone was thicker and was longer than on a normal dragon. The joint at the end of the arm was topped with a large hooked claw (to act as his front foot in place of his arms). But there were no "finger" bones like a normal dragons' wing would, only the main supporting one that connected with the arm bone, leaving a wide space between the tip of the wing to the base. Between the wing structure was simply a wide stretch of membrane that hung loosely when the wings were folded.

*(I have a drawing of this OC on my deviant art page, "SapphireClaw")*

The dragon had a long tail that was tipped with an odd jagged blade-like spike. He has a short neck with a normal-sized head. What was most odd about his head was the fact that he had ears (kinda like discord's ears)! His snout was shorter than most dragons. His horns were jagged spikes that looked like the spine on his tail.

Over all, he was a very odd dragon.

He looked up at us and saw our shocked and confused faces. "What's the matter?" he asked in the rough, growly accent that dragons tend to have when speaking in pony language.

"What are you?!" Twilight gasped as she studied the dragon's appearance.

"I'm a dragon, duh." he said in an annoyed voice.

"We know that!" I spoke up, "but I've never seen a dragon that looks anything like you!" I exclaimed.

"well I'm not surprised, seeing as how I'm one of the last of my kind." He said in a more serious tone.

"What do you mean?"

"I meant exactly what I said. I'm one of, if not the last, of my kind." he repeated annoyingly.

Twilight sighed in frustration. "Could you at least tell me why the hay you decided to invade my home?"

The dragon's ears perked up and his eyes became serious.

"I was searching for a pony named Sapphire." The dragon said.

I looked him over, pondering wether or not to answer. "Who's asking?" I finally growled.

The dragon heaved an annoyed sigh, "The name's Zeek." he said bluntly.

"Okay, Zeek. I'm the one your looking for. What is your business with me?" I growled.

"Your parents sent me..."

"WHAT?!"

(Cliffy! :3)

(There! My new OC! He will be explained more later in the story. Sorry for the massive wall of text to describe Zeek. I have a picture of him and Sapphire on my Deviant art: SapphireClaw, if your still confused about his appearance.)


	23. Chapter 22

"M-My... Parents?" I whispered, my voice barely audible.

"Yes." Zeek answered in a serious tone.

The eight of us sat gawking at the odd blue dragon. He flicked his ears awkwardly and shifted his folded wings.

"Are they alright?! What happened?" I managed to choke out.

Zeek cast his gaze to the floor in shame. "Things aren't going very well... Your parents sent me to give you a warning..." He murmured.

"What is it?" I demanded impatiently.

"Your father was recently overthrown by a strange dragon-"

"Overthrown?" I interrupted. "What do you mean? My dad wasn't part of anything like that..."

Zeek hissed something under his breath before continuing. "Sapphire, he never told you this, but your father is... Well, WAS a Dragon Elder. Elder Scohr."

I stood still and stared at Zeek in disbelief. My dad was an Elder?! They are the rulers of the dragons, kinda like Celestia. There can only be five Elders in the dragon kingdom, and my father was always around when I grew up with him. How was he supposed to be running the dragon kingdom if he was always with me and mother?!

"Once you left to live with ponies, Schor was called back into Eldership by the other Elders. A threat had appeared within the nation and they needed all elders to be present. But not long after he was called back, another dragon defeated Schor and took his place in the Elder council." Zeek explained.

"But why did he send you here?!" I asked impatiently.

"Because he's afraid that the dragons and the ponies will go to war soon. The new elder has been trying to start a battle between them ever since he defeated your father. Your dad wanted you to flee before the war starts, he doesn't want you to get hurt." Zeek said.

"B-But princess Celestia said that they weren't going to war!" I exclaimed angrily.

I spun around to look at Twilight and gave her a questioning glare. The lavender unicorn shuffled her hooves nervously.

"She won't! Don't worry, I have faith in Celestia! She'll figure this out!" Twilight said enthusiastically.

I snorted and turned back to Zeek. The young dragon looked up at me as I towered above him. "How do we know you are telling the truth? How do you know my father?!" I snarled.

It was very out of character for me to be this angry. Especially towards someone who wasn't at fault.

Zeek gulped and stared up at me. "Uh... Y-Your father was a close friend with my dad, Who passed away long ago. A-And he wanted someone he could trust to find you... Corruption has been spreading throughout the dragon council, your father couldn't even trust his own military generals to ensure your safety..." Zeek stammered under my burning gaze.

"Why would my father send such a tiny dragon to find me?! Why hasn't he sent for me sooner!" I growled as I paced around the room.

"I...I'm sorry miss Sapphire. I didn't mean any harm, I was simply doing what your father asked..." Zeek squeaked.

I swung my head to glare at him, a sharp retort rising in my mind. But then I saw Zeek's face, he looked sad and hurt. I felt a stab of pain in my heart. he wasn't to blame! Zeek is only trying to help me...

I heaved a deep sigh. "No, I'M the one who should be sorry. I shouldn't have gotten all mad like that. You were only trying to help and I took my anger out on you." I said softly, turning around to face the young dragon. "I'm sorry, Zeek."

Zeek smiled, "It's alright. I'm actually a little surprised. From how much your dad threatened me if anything happened to you or if I did anything to upset you, I expected you to be a short-tempered, kick-me-in-the-face kind of pony... Er... Dragon... Uh... *Facepaw* (or in his case, face-wing :3)" Zeek stammered.

An amused smile spread across my muzzle. "Don't jump to conclusions just yet!" I said humorously.

Zeek smiled a bit at my words but grew serious once more. "Well, we'd better get going. The war could start before we get to safety." He said, turning around towards the open window and spreading his wings to fly.

"No..."

Zeek spun around in surprise. "N-No? What do you mean, NO?!" he gasped.

"I'm not leaving my friends! I'm going to travel to the dragon kingdoms and sort this out!" I shouted in a determined voice.

Zeek looked angry and a bit scared. "B-But... Your dad asked me to get you to safety!" he argued.

I shook my head. "I am going to stop this war. Both my family and my friends will be in danger, and I will not that happen. My father will understand." I sat down on the floor to show that I wasn't leaving. It was rather childish, but Zeek is a young dragon after all, so he would understand.

The Wyvern sighed in annoyance and flapped his wings in frustration. A few papers flew from the desk and floated through the air. Zeek paced around for a while, trying to think of a way to convince me. But I held firm.

"Alright... I see that you aren't going to give up..." Zeek sighed. "But I am going with you. It's a long journey to get to the dragon kingdom from here. And I can't risk you getting hurt, your father would have a cow!" he said almost jokingly.

I smiled and gave the small dragon a hug. "Thanks Zeek."

He pulled himself away and smoothed down his ruffled fur with a wingtip. "*Ahem* Now that that's out of the way... When are you leaving?" Zeek asked awkwardly.

"Twilight, when did the princess say we were going to leave?" I said, turning to the lavender unicorn.

She picked up the letter and skimmed through it. "In three days." Twilight announced.

"Perfect!" I said. then turning to Zeek I said, "Your just gonna have to stay with us until then!"

Zeek sighed again. "Your father is going to throw a fit when he finds out what your doing, if he doesn't throw something else at me first..." he mumbled.

I laughed a bit at his comment. He looked at me in annoyance, "What's so funny?" he said, crossing his wings over his chest in a pouting gesture.

'i like this kid!' I thought.


	24. Chapter 23

-23

*( WARNING: this chapter may cause heart attacks of adorableness. And is also completely pointless and short. I was just trying to update with something. So consider this a filler chapter.)*

*( You have been warned. )*

"Gaaaahhh... Hmmmmmph..."

I could hear Zeek tossing and turning in his bed. He was obviously uncomfortable with sleeping in Spike's extra bed, which was more of a basket and was far too small for Zeek.

Why did I have to share a room with that irritating lump of fur and scales? Was he was trying to be annoying? It couldn't be that bad, after all, it is a bed made for a dragon... A much smaller dragon...

The blue dragon groaned again and turned over once more. that's it! I sighed in annoyance and trotted over to the basket as quietly as I could.

"Hey Zeek..." I whispered, shaking his shoulder with a hoof.

"Hmmm? Waddya want?" he grumbled.

I rolled my eyes. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but you can sleep in the bed..." I murmured.

Zeek immediately jumped up and began to bound towards the bed. He ran in an odd way. I've seen him mostly run on his back legs with his wings tucked to his side. But on occasion he would go on all "fours," if that's what you would call it. He folds his wings pointed towards the floor and puts the tips of his wings against the ground. He walked like that, his wings acting as his front legs. It looked a bit weird with his wings sticking up from the ground.

*(If it were a pony, imagine the pony having wings attached to it's forelegs, moving as the legs moved. Zeek will be walking like this a lot, so I found it important to include a description.)*

Zeek jumped onto the bed in a cannonball. He circled the blankets like a cat before laying down.

I sighed and tried to make the floor as comfortable as possible. The rug seemed to be the only soft thing on this wooden floor. I curled up with the small blanket that was on Spike's bed and let out a sigh.

Zeek poked his head over the bedside to look down at me. He looked confused and sympathetic. "Ya know... You can sleep on the bed... It was nice of you to let me, but I can't let you sleep like that!" Zeek whispered.

I sighed and got up, looking at Zeek gratefully. He nodded and jumped back down to the tiny dragon bed. He tried again to get comfortable, but failed. He sighed quietly in annoyance but didn't make any loud noises.

I sighed again, why does this kid have to be so... So annoyingly adorable? He's not much older than Spike but acted a lot younger. He got excited easier and jumped around energetically, unlike Spike.

I lifted the pillow I was laying on and dropped it on the floor. Zeek looked up at it. He smiled at me as a thank-you and got up. He took the wide pillow and placed it on the rug at the base of my bed. Zeek sighed in relief and settled down on the fluffy pillow.

I crossed my hooves together and laid my head on them instead of the pillow that Zeek was now soundly asleep on. I soon followed him and fell asleep.


	25. Chapter 24

-24

* * *

I stood on the top of a hill, facing the everfree forest. Many ponies were gathered around, including Princess Celestia and Luna. I finally got to meet them!

Celestia was a bit wary at first sight of me, but Luna happily accepted my hoofshake. Something about understanding my situation, I cant really remember what she said. Well, she was shaking my hoof pretty hard so it was kinda tough to understand what she was ranting about.

Celestia had added a few more items in my saddle bag. two copies of her message for the dragons, a small box of extremely precious gems only native to the pony kingdom as a gift for the Elders, and a list of information she wanted me to find while I was at the dragon kingdom. Luna had been very generous and rather excited. She gave me a ton of gems to eat along with words of good luck about a dozen times.

I rather enjoyed Luna, she reminded me  
of myself in some ways. Her coat was the same shade of blue I had in my mane (if not a bit darker on Luna), which added to my fondness since blue is one of my favorite colors. My dragon wings were also the size of her feathered ones. unusually large seeing as how my body is still smaller than her's yet my wings are massive in comparison to my size.

A breeze blew from the Everfree forest, ruffling my mane and helped cool my nerves.

"Are we gonna go yet?" An irritating voice whined rather loudly from behind. I let out an exasperated sigh and turned my head. Zeek was sitting on my back with his wing tips placed on my pelt to steady himself.

"Oh yeah. You're still here..." I grumbled.

Zeek grinned and threw himself backwards. He landed on his back and folded his wings behind his head, which was resting on my hindquarters. He could barely fit his body on my back without his legs hanging off. "Yep! And you're gonna be stuck with this little dragon wether you like it or not!" Zeek snorted.

I sighed again and turned my attention to the crowd of ponies behind me. The princesses and my friends stood at the front, waving their hooves in farewell. I raised my own leg and waved back before taking a step towards the forest.

"Sapphire! Wait!" A small voice shrieked.

I gasped as a little ball of fur crashed into me, sending Zeek toppling off my back with a yelp of protest. Hail wrapped his little hooves around my foreleg to keep me from leaving. "Don't go! What if that thing comes back? What if you get hurt?" The little grey pegasus cried.

I smiled sadly down at the small pony, wrapping my long purple legs around the colt and giving him a quick hug. "Hey, don't think like that! I'll be back before you know it! And besides, you have Twilight and Spike to fight those monsters off if they show up while I'm gone!" I reassured.

The pegasus sniffled and slowly let go of my leg. I took a step away and lowered my head to be eye level with him. "I promise I'll be back soon, Okay? Tell ya what, how about I bring you a present back from the dragon kingdom. What do you say?" I said softly.

Hail nodded and rubbed away the tears that were forming in his eyes. "Uh huh." he answered quietly, yawning a bit.

Lilly approached us and smiled sweetly, her pollen-yellow fur ruffling in the cold breeze. "Good luck, Sapphire, we all hope you return safely. Little Hail here has grown quite attached to you." Lilly laughed as she lifted her sleepy son onto her back. She turned around and trotted away. I smiled and faced the dark forest again.

Zeek clambered onto my back once more, angrily muttering something to himself. "Can we go yet?" he grumbled. I looked at Twilight for approval, who looked up at the princesses. They nodded and waved in farewell. I smiled and started to trot towards the eerie forest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm tired! My feeeet hurt, when are we going to stop and rest?" Zeek whined loudly with his head sticking up in the air. He let his wings and tail drag in the dust behind him as he walked sluggishly along.

My eye twitched. "Zeek. I swear... If you ask me that one more time, I'm gonna tie you to a tree and leave you there." I growled angrily.

Zeek flopped forward onto his belly in the dirt path dramatically. "But I really am tired..." He murmured.

I stopped walking and looked back at the little blue dragon. He honestly looked exhausted. I felt a slight pain in my heart, I had forgotten that Zeek traveled all the way to Ponyville from the dragon kingdom! He only had a couple days' rest before we left and started this journey.

I trotted up to the small furry reptile and wriggled my head under him. He stared at me with his striking yellow eyes in surprise as he slid down my neck and onto my back. I smiled warmly at him.

"Okay, you can rest for a while. But don't expect me to carry you the whole way there, ya bum!" I snorted jokingly.

Zeek purred in gratitude and curled up on my back. He chose the spot on my shoulders between my wings and soon fell asleep. I sadly smiled down at the young dragon. he mentioned the passing of his father, but he never said anything about a mother. He must be an orphan... Poor little guy.

I continued walking slowly along the winding dirt trail, trying not to wake the sleeping dragon.

* * *

(i know i didn't need to put that last bit on this chapter, but i wanted to! I haven't updated in awhile so i wanted to put something funny in teh chapter! :3)


	26. Chapter 25

-25

* * *

"Zeek... Zeek, wake up."

"No... Five more minutes..." A very sleepy Zeek mumbled.

I rolled my eyes, "Come on, you lazy sack of fur, get up!" I commanded.

Zeek raised his head and glared at me. "Alright, alright!"

The dragon stood up and shook out his fur, making it stick out at some places. I smiled and started off down the trail again with Zeek scrambling after me. We walked through the dark forest in silence, the only noise was the callings of animals in the distance.

"Soooo... Your the last of your kind?" I asked awkwardly. I was merely trying to start a conversation.

"Yeah, I guess." Zeek mumbled, shrugging his shoulders.

"And what is your kind anyway?"

"I'm a lightning dragon." He answered.

That caught my attention. "Lighting dragon? I've never heard of them before..." I murmured thoughtfully.

"Well, yeah. We are going extinct after all." he grumbled.

"Oh... Right..." I said sheepishly. "Well, why are you going extinct?"

Zeek flicked his ears annoyingly. "I guess it's because lightning dragons are one of the smallest breeds of dragons. I'm twelve years old, and spike was about nine or ten. My kind grow up pretty fast but we only grow to the size of a cottage, like the ones in Ponyville. We don't live as long as the more common fire dragons, Lightning dragons live to be around one hundred, give or take a few years." Zeek rambled.

"That's cool... Sorry about the whole going extinct thing. That's gotta be tough." I responded.

Zeek looked rather uncomfortable talking about his kind. Well, it isn't exactly going to be his favorite subject. So we simply continued in silence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We had been walking for about ten hours when I looked up at the sky, it was getting dark pretty fast. And we haven't cleared the Everfree forest yet! I let Zeek sleep in when I shouldn't have.

"Zeek, I think we should stop for the night..." I whispered.

Zeek looked around at the eerie trees above, ears twitching as they picked up the sounds of lurking predators. "Okay... Where are we going to sleep? We can't rest down here, it's too dangerous. And the trees wouldn't be much safer either." he murmured.

"Follow me." I commanded.

My wings spread out and I leaped into the air. Zeek soon took flight and followed. I rose above the trees and scanned the skies.

"Aha!" I chirped.

I flew over to a cloud and pushed it with my hooves. I gathered several fluffy cumulus clouds and compressed them into one large lump.

"There we go!" I announced, waving at the clouds with my hoof.

Zeek tilted his head. "Okay... What are we supposed to do with this?" he asked.

I looked at the little dragon in bewilderment. "Well we sleep on it of course!" I replied, landing down on the cloud to get comfortable.

"But dragons can't sleep on clouds like Pegasi can." Zeek argued.

"Oh... Well... Um, Here." I muttered. I spread one wing out onto the cloud and motioned to Zeek. He reluctantly stepped onto my wing, testing the stability of the cloud under it. When he decided it was safe, he settled onto it and curled up to sleep. I smiled and laid my head down on the cloud, soon falling asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Me and Zeek woke up in the early morning to get ready and continue to the dragon kingdom. I shared the gems Luna had given me with Zeek for breakfast. He quickly finished and was now hovering above me impatiently.

"Come on, Sapphire!" Zeek whined. "We gotta get going or else we won't make it to the canyon by sundown."

"Alright!" I mumbled. I quickly packed my stuff into the saddle bag and strapped it on my back. "Let's go."

I took to the skies and flew to the south where the dragon kingdom was located. The wind was low and smooth as we flew above the Everfree forest, making our journey much easier.

The trees below soon thinned out and were replaced by shrubs and twisted pines. I took notice and nudged Zeek.

"Where are we?" I asked.

Zeek's expression was serious, something unusual for his usually annoying attitude. "It's the desert badlands. Don't worry, we only have to cross it for a few miles before we reach the canyon." He explained. "Just... Keep flying. Don't look at anything. If you think you see something, it doesn't exist, the desert causes hallucinations."

I obeyed and kept flying strait ahead. A sparkle caught my eye, I looked down and saw something shining among the scraggly bushes up ahead. It was so pretty... Glittery and eye-catching.

"Sapphire!" Zeek hissed.

"Wha?"

I had begun to glide downwards toward the shiny object without realizing. "S-Sorry..." I gasped. He wasn't kidding! This desert doesn't feel right... I hope we leave it soon...

(I was gonna add more to this part but this story is going to be quite lengthy so I cut it short. sorry)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~squiggles~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Luckily, that blasted wasteland ended, opening into a flat landscape. A massive orange-colored canyon cut through the earth like a giant wound.

"Here we are! The canyon of Aboc. Awesome, isn't it?" Zeek announced.

I nodded slowly, staring in awe at the huge canyon that stretched out in front of me. It was just so... Big.  
"How are we going to cross this before sunset?!" I exclaimed.

Zeek sighed and looked up at the sun, which was in the center of the sky. "We might have to wait. Let's just say that you don't want to be caught out here at night, it's bad enough in the daytime."

"We'd better get going then! I don't want to wait around until nighttime!" I announced, spreading my wings and preparing to leap into flight.

"Wait!" Zeek hissed and grabbed my tail before I could take off.

"What?!"

"We can't fly over the canyon, the wind currents are treacherous. The cracks below cause deadfalls to form in the air all over. But the currents in the canyon itself are relatively safe." Zeek explained.

"What? We have to fly inside that maze?!" I exclaimed.

Zeek rolled his eyes. "Yes. But we can fly up to see where we are and you have a compass in that saddle bag. Come on, we'd better get going, we are wasting all of the time left in the day!" With that, we leaped down into the labyrinth-like canyon.


	27. Chapter 26

-26

"Hey Zeek?"

"Yeah?"

"Is that bird following us?"

Me and Zeek flew down a massive crack in the canyon, slowly winding our way south. Zeek craned his neck to look at whatever I was talking about. A black vulture-like bird flew behind us. Although it was quite a distance away, it was giving me the creeps.

"Oh crap... That's a Darkfiend. Thank goodness its alone. Just ignore him and hope he will go away." Zeek whispered worriedly. I stared strait ahead and continued flying down the corridor-like crack.

A crackling 'Caw' sounded behind me. I reluctantly looked back. There were now two birds following us.

"Zeek..." I warned.

"I know..." Zeek hissed. "We are in so much trouble..."

"What are those things?"

"Like I said, they are Darkfiends. Nasty scavenger birds with a mean streak a mile wide and an even meaner bite. They follow in large groups and ambush other creatures for fun." Zeek told me.

My blue eyes widened and I looked back again, there where now four Darkfiends following us.

"Zeeeeeek..."

"I know!" he growled. "I'm thinking... ignoring them isn't going to work, so we're gonna have to try and outfly them. Try and loose them in the maze. Ready?"

I nodded and took a deep breath. "Ready."

"Alright... Here we go... NOW!" Zeek shouted.

I heard the birds' cries grow louder and more excited. I tried to calm myself as I beat my wings faster. Zeek was gaining speed behind and came up next to me.

"There's more now! Ten of the little punks!" Zeek hissed.

I flapped harder, but the sound if the Darkfiends sounded closer and closer. "This way Zeek!" I called as I turned sharply and flew into a crack off to the side. I heard Zeek's wing beats and knew he was following.

The sound of the birds was louder, sounding like there was many more adding to the group. "Zeek, what are we gonna do?"

"I Don't know! Just keep flying and hope they loose interest!" The little dragon called.

The two of us dodged and dove into different passageways and caverns to try and throw off our attackers. But the birds kept coming at us, growing in numbers.

I was growing tired, Zeek wasn't doing much better. It seemed like no matter where we went, the Darkfiends would follow. Getting closer and closer.

"Youch!" I heard Zeek snarl.

"What happened?"

"A stupid bird bit my wing!"

"Crap! How bad is it?!" I asked worriedly. I looked over and saw the membrane on Zeek's left wing was torn.

"Pretty bad... I don't think we are going to escape these flea-bitten overgrown chickens!" Zeek growled.

"But we have to! Come on, Zeek! Fly faster, I know you can!" I begged. But the little dragon's flight pattern was getting clumsier and slower.

"I'm sorry, I can't!" Zeek whimpered.

The Darkfiends were close enough that they could attack us completely, but they seemed to only take small hits before flying back into the group. They were toying with us!

Another bird came forward to bite his wing again. I snarled in rage and swooped back to grab Zeek, kicking the Darkfiend away. I wrapped my front legs around the small dragon's body and tried flying faster. But the weight of Zeek slowed me down and the voices of the birds grew closer.

"Oh... Celestia help us!" I whispered, screwing my eyes shut as a wave of black feathers rose behind us, reeking of rotten carcasses. I wrapped my wings around Zeek and curled into a ball to protect him from the razor-sharp beaks of the terrible birds. The dark torrent surrounded me, smothering Zeek and myself with their revolting feathers. The din of cackling 'Caws' faded into static as I fell unconscious.

* * *

(ha! cliffy! :3 i'm so evil)


	28. Chapter 27

-27

"Ooooh... What happened?" I murmured as I opened my eyes groggily, staring up at a ceiling of orange sandstone.

(this is the second time Sapphire has woken up in somebody else's home after getting hurt... :I)

I sat up and looked around. I saw the walls of a small dark cavern. The flicker of a small candle glowed nearby, lighting up the dim cave and projecting dancing orange shadows on the walls. Furs, trinkets, and some small wooden furniture were the only other things in the room with me. The decorations reminded me of Zecora's hut, looking quite similar but without the masks and tribal objects.

"Why, good morning!" A soft feminine voice announced. I turned my head to see who spoke. An odd creature walked into the cave through a tunnel in the side that was covered by beaded strings.

The creature was a female reptile of some sort. She was a shade of lime green with a scaled yellow-green belly. She had quite a long neck, stretching above her shoulders about one foot. Her head was like a dragon's but with a much shorter and thinner muzzle and kind blue eyes. Her horns were skinny hooks that curved upward from the back of her head. She was bipedal, having strong scaled rabbit-like back legs and short arms. From her back flowed a pair of snow-white angelic feathered wings.

"Who are you? What are you?" I asked skittishly, startled by the creature's appearance.

"Oh, I'm sorry dear. Where are my manners?" The reptile chuckled. "I am an Amphisbaenia. But you can call me Amphis!" She set down the bowl she was holding and held out her clawed paw. I shook it politely.

(on a side note, I am using the mythical creature Amphisbaenia, which is actually referred to in many ancient legends. But I am basing its appearance off the model of one in the game "Super Scribblenaughts" (which i DO NOT OWN) where I first learned of the mythical beast. I simply think the Scribblenaught version is much more friendlier-looking and more cannon to MLP's animation style. If your having a hard time imagining Amphis, look up 'super scibblenaughts Amphisbaenia' in google, m'kay?)

"Nice to meet you, Amphis. My name is Sapphire and this is Ze-" I stopped and looked around the cave frantically. "Zeek? Where is Zeek!?"

Amphis chuckled, "He's fine! He woke up before you did, he's eating in a different chamber." She turned around to walk down the tunnel with me right behind her.

A flick of red caught my sharp eyes. I looked down and saw a big lime-green snake slithering at my hooves. "Waaahh! A-Amphis! There's a snake in here!" I gasped, backing away from it in case the reptile was poisonous.

"Hm?" Amphis turned her head, her long neck allowing it to turn completely around and looked down. When she saw the snake she let out a laugh, grinning in amusement.

"W-What's so funny?" I stammered, glaring at the Amphisbaenia.

The snake moved again, and to my surprise, I discovered that it was attached to Amphis's behind. The snake swung in the air as if it was waving at me.

"That's my tail, Sweetie!" Amphis chuckled.

She wagged her snake-tail around in a circular motion and then lowered it back to the ground. Amphis continued down the tunnel. I slowly followed, still dazed by her weird tail, which was now staring at me and flicking it's tongue.

Amphis brushed another veil of beaded strings at the end of the tunnel aside and entered a different chamber. This cave was more brightly lit and had more furnishings.

"Hey Sapphire!" Zeek called, waving at me with his wing from where he sat at a table.

"Zeek! You're okay!" I said happily, ruffling the little dragon's ears playfully. He shoved me away and shook his head.

"Yep! Amphis saw the Darkfiends attacking us so she chased them away and took us back here!" Zeek said, gesturing to Amphis with his wing.

"Well, that was really kind of her. Anyway, how is your wing?" I asked worriedly.

"Hm? My wing? It's fine." He replied, lifting his left wing and flapping it once. The tear was nowhere to be seen!

I was about to ask how the wound healed so quickly when Amphis stepped up and said, "We Amphisbaenia have healing powers. Fixed em' up like new!"

"Thank you very much! But we have to get going soon, we are kind of in a hurry..." I said awkwardly.

"I know! I um... Well I read the message your princess is giving to the dragons. Sorry if I was intruding, I was just wondering why you two were way out here in the first place. I don't get many visitors other than those wretched Darkfiends an the occasional gryphon merchant traveling by." Amphis said sheepishly.

I smiled at the Amphisbaenia and shook my head. "Its okay! Your generosity has been enormous. Your curiosity would be expected!"

"That's good..." Amphis sighed. Suddenly, she straightened up and scurried over to a basket full of trinkets in the corner if the room. "Oh, before you go, I have something for you!" She said as she dug through the container.

"Here!" She announced, pulling her head out of the basket and holding out her paw.

I approached the green reptile and took the item from her and gasped. It was a small but beautiful necklace! It had a collar-like shape that had a wide blue ribbon with shimmering purple curls that made up the chain part. The pendant was fitted in the center of the lace, a polished round amethyst crystal that had an odd clouded lavender swirl spiraling through the middle of the gem.

"Wow! It's is beautiful! This is for me?! Thanks!" I exclaimed.

Amphis smiled warmly at me. "Your very welcome! That little trinket there is called a Laora. It will protect you from the Darkfiends on your way out of the canyon. Its too small for my long neck but it should fit you well."

I trotted up to Amphis and gave her a hug. "Really, thanks." I murmured.

"I'm honored." she said as she returned the hug.

I fitted the necklace around my neck and admired it. The dark blue ribbon fit really well, hugging my neck instead if hanging down like normal necklaces. I lifted my saddle bag onto my back and waved to Amphis. "Bye!"

"Goodbye my friends! Don't be shy to come back sometime soon, okay!" Amphis called as Zeek and I leaped out if the cave and took to the sky.

"We will!" I replied.

"Yeah! And thanks for healing my wing!" Zeek added.

With that, we continued flying through the winding canyon confidently. Not one Darkfiend bothered us the whole way. I silently thanked Amphis again for her gift. And for her additional gift if friendship.


	29. Chapter 28

- 28

Zeek and I were making great progress after we left that canyon. But right now, I kinda miss the bright orange sandstone and blazing sun. Why? Because now we're stuck in a freaking blizzard.

We had left the desert area behind and traveled across the Windego Hills plain and into a dense pine forest. I had already noticed the dropping temperature but I didn't care, I have fur after all and so does Zeek. But I was foolish to think that the dark storm clouds wouldn't be an obstacle. I kept telling myself that we would get out of the pine forest before it snowed, but I forgot that pine forests can stretch far greater distances than normal forests. And now I was in trouble.

All I could see was swirling white in all directions. I couldn't even see Zeek! But his unique wing beats told me that he wasn't too far off.

But something was wrong... His wing beats sound odd.

"Zeek? You okay?" I called into the white nothingness.

"Y-Yeah, ju-just f-fine" Came the chattering reply.

I didn't believe him for a second. "Zeek, seriously, what's wrong?"

"N-Nothing!"

I decided to leave it for now and try to carry on. We didn't seem to have a problem with direction or speed so we could just continue. Dragons can fly through just about any type of weather and they have a pretty decent sense of navigation.

Then I heard it again. An odd stiff flapping sound from behind. It's Zeek, I know it is. I've learned to recognize his wing beats by heart. I don't know why I did, I guess it's because I feel protective of the little guy. So now that I could feel that something was off, I couldn't help but be worried.

"Zeek, don't lie to me. What's wrong with your wings? Is your wound acting up?" I asked.

"They're just a l-little st-stiff is all." Zeek replied.

'Dang kid, why is he so stubborn?' "Come 'ere" I sighed. I slowed my flight so he could catch up to me. I still couldn't see him very well, but at least his bright yellow and blue fur was easier to see in this weather. Zeek took longer than I expected to catch up, as if something was slowing him down.

I moved closer to the little dragon so I could see him better. I immediately noticed how he positioned his wings. They were stiffly flapping up and down, none of the fluid rowing motion of a normal flight pattern. What's more, they were glistening. Upon closer inspection, I saw a layer of ice covering the front of Zeek's wing.

"Zeek! Why didn't you tell me your wings were freezing over? Do you know how dangerous that is?!" I demanded.

Zeek craned his neck to look at his own wings. "They are?" his eyes widened when he spotted the ice crystals forming along his wing tip and down the arm. "I-I didn't know! All I could feel was a numb ache!" he gasped.

"Well we'd better find some shelter. Come on, you little Popsicle." I sighed.

"N-No! I can ke-keep going. Honest!" Zeek argued. He tried stretching his wings out to fly faster but ended up cracking the layer of ice. "Ouch! Jeez, okay... Maybe shelter isn't such a bad idea after all..." Zeek sighed.

I smirked but held back a childish 'told you so.' "Lets go see if we can find ourselves a little hollow tree or something." I began to glide downwards where I guessed the trees were at.

I barely dodged the top of a tree as it appeared out of the white blizzard. "Woah..." Zeek followed close behind, his wing beats growing clumsier and clumsier.

"Gah!" I gasped as a massive pine tree appeared out of the swirling whiteness and I collided into the thick green needles. Zeek was soon to follow, tumbling down behind me and onto the spindly branches.

Once my world stopped spinning I found myself splayed on a thick branch with Zeek lying next to me. He seemed okay, no serious injuries besides a few scrapes and bruises.

"Oh dear! Are you two alright?" An odd voice cooed.

I looked around and spotted a huge hollow in the pine tree we crashed into. Two big snowy owls peeked out from inside the cavern-like space. At least I think there was two... My head was spinning too fast for me to tell.

"Mhm... I think so." I mumbled, rubbing my aching head. I prodded Zeek with my hoof. "Hey Zeek, you okay?"

"Muuuhhh..." Zeek groaned, lifting his head and staring around. "How many times are we gonna hurt ourselves during this journey?" Zeek growled.

"Do you need a place to stay, dearies? We have plenty of room in here! In fact, we can use one of our guest hollows so you can use this one!" The female snowy owl chirped.

"That's very kind of you." I said politely.

"Oh, don't worry about it dear! We don't get many visitors so you are welcome! Besides, you look like you need the rest!" The female snowy fretted. The male simply sat next to her and stated at us. I can easily guess who does most of the talking in this family.

The owl couple flew out of the hollow and traveled up higher to get to a smaller hollow above us. I nudged Zeek into the bigger hollow and clambered in after him. It was quite nice, not as nice as a normal home but pretty good for an animal den.

"It's cramped in here." Zeek whined.

I rolled my eyes. "Oh no, you're back to complaining."

"Yep!" Zeek said enthusiastically.

"Well, I might as well get used to it since I'm stuck with you." I sighed.

Zeek looked genuinely hurt at my words. "What do you mean?"

"Not like that, Zeek, I wasn't being serious! You're good fun to be around, don't worry." I corrected, nudging Zeek I'm the shoulder. He sighed and stared at the wood floor. "Zeek, what's wrong?" I asked worriedly.

"N-Nothing." He mumbled.

"Really, Zeek, what's the matter?" I said softly.

Zeek sighed and let his wings droop. "It's just that you're the first friend I've really had. I mean, your father was like a grandpa to me after my dad died when I was little, but you are my first friend."

"Why's that? You seem like a likable and funny little guy."

"I don't know... I guess the others think I'm worthless... Lightning dragons were well respected back in the day but once we started going extinct the other dragons thought it was because we were weak. My father was a fierce military general when he was alive. But then he was killed in action by a surprise attack from the enemy's manticore squadron. I was scoffed and turned away once I didn't have a family or the support of my father. But your dad took me in and helped train me to be stronger."

I smiled, "That sounds just like him. He took me in too. But it was more my mother's idea, she was the one who found me after all." I looked down at Zeek, a sad look in my blue eyes. "You know... I don't think you're weak. You are the bravest and smartest person I've met. Twilight Sparkle is smart, but she can't truly face something without her friends, although that isn't a bad thing. You, however, grew up all alone with no friends to help you with your struggles. And that's not exactly a bad thing either in the long run. It helped you grow stronger independently and learn to work alone, which can be a useful ability. And now after all that, you have me and my father to help you along the way."

Zeek smiled a bit but it soon faded. "But I'm so worthless... The lightning dragons will soon die off and I can't do anything about it... I'm just one little useless dragon who only causes discomfort for whoever is near." He mumbled.

I stared down at Zeek in disbelief. 'How could he think that way? After all he's done for me?' I thought.A new fire alighted within me as I glared at the little dragon sitting next to me. Anger and affection shone in the dark blue depths of my eyes. "Don't you ever call yourself useless! Without you, I would have been oblivious to the danger in the dragon kingdom! And if you weren't beside me in the canyons, I would have been the Darkfiends' new chew toy! I don't care if you're annoying at times or are can be a lazy sack of fur, you are my friend! And friends hold each other up no matter what! Now you listen to me, I don't care if you are a part of a dying dragon race! if anything that makes you even more unique and mysterious. I wish there were others like you, Zeek. I wish everypony could have an awesome friend like you." I rambled.

Zeek stared at me with a bewildered expression while I spoke. Once I finished talking he was at a loss for words. I patiently waited for his response but he never spoke, only stared up at me. Imagine my surprise when tears started forming in his eyes.

"What's the matter?" I stammered. 'Did I say something wrong?'

"N-Nothing... It's just... You are the first living thing to say something like that to me. Your father simply encouraged me to become stronger while giving me support while it happened. But nobody's ever said I was brave... I've only ever been a little dragon among huge and powerful beasts who made me seem so tiny and insignificant next to them. T-Thank you." Zeek sniffled.

I smiled warmly at the young dragon and nuzzled his cheek. "You're welcome. Now get some rest, once this storm has passed, we will be traveling the rest of the way to the kingdom." I murmured.

Zeek yawned and nodded. He curled up next to me and soon fell asleep. The hollow was filled with his soft snores, mixing with the whistle of the wind outside our warm refuge. I smiled and laid down next to him. I wrapped my wing protectively around the little dragon's body and stared out at the swirling snow.

'My little Zeek... You've been through so much. It pains me to see how excited you were to gain something so commonly obtained by someone as caring and funny as you. A friend. Something you should have had long ago yet were forced to live without for much of your life. But I'm here now. And we will conquer all in our path so long as we are together. My little Zeek, welcome to the magic that is friendship.'

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*( ;u; bros, wasn't that beautiful? I'm actually surprised with myself, I'm usually not very good at writing sappy stuff like that. But that... Was a HUGE exception! OmO Anyway, I love how this chapter turned out. Sorry for such a long wait. But it was worth the wait, was it not?

*(A small look into poor little Zeek's past. For such a sad past, Zeek is quite cheerful. Maybe it's forced cheerfulness? Maybe he acts that way so others can be happy while he holds all of his problems inside so nobody else is burdened but himself? Or maybe it's just his way of dealing with his conflicting past. OR he's just an annoying little brat. Your choice. :3)*


	30. Chapter 29

(Sorry for the wait everybody! Dx but here it is! the net chapter. updating is still gonna be pretty slow but I'm back on track.)

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- chapter 29

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"There it is!" Zeek announced.

I saw a huge range of volcanoes up ahead. The massive mountains rose from the ground to tower above the magma beds and burned forests that surrounded it. Rivers of lava sluggishly flowed down the sides of the mountains, glowing bright orange against the dark ashy grey color of the stone.

We left that hollow tree as soon as the storm passed. The female snowy owl wouldn't stop fretting over Zeek so we ended up leaving later than we had planned. Luckily it didn't take too long and we were able to make up for the lost time.

"So that's the dragon kingdom? A bunch of volcanoes? Do they all live in the magma?" I asked worriedly. I wasn't exactly a dragon after all. I have no idea how well my pony body would withstand that heat.

"Don't worry, there are spells to help keep the magma stable and the temperature down. There are ice dragons living there so extreme heat would be hazardous. Hundreds of caves and carved stone hollows make up about a fourth of the homes in the kingdom. We can take one of them." Zeek reassured.

The two of us picked up speed and quickly approached the volcanoes. I could now make out several massive structures rising from within the craters as well as dozens of carved stone walkways that spiraled around the outside of the cones. The buildings looked intricate and quite breath-taking. They reminded me somewhat of the structures in Cloudsdale but more medieval and dark-themed.

Zeek slowly began gliding down towards a massive gate at the base of the first volcano. I followed obediently. After all, he lives here and I have no idea where I'm going!

Zeek and I landed in front of a massive carved stone gateway that was guarded by two big dragons. One of the guards was a huge and bulky green dragon that had plenty of spikes adorning it's back and a pair of thick horns atop it's head. The other guard was a skinnier red dragon that had a huge pair of orange wings and sharp curvy spines.

"Halt. State your business." the big green one demanded in a deep voice. his brown eyes were cold and searching as he studied me.

"Um... We are here with a message from the princesses of Equestria. It is of utmost importance that it reaches the dragon council." I said with as much authority as I could. But on the inside I was shaking like a leaf. Geez these guys are intimidating!

The green guard studied me and Zeek through narrowed eyes. "Very well. You may enter. We haven't had many ponies visit this kingdom, welcome." He said. The huge stone gate opened slowly to reveal a huge staircase leading up the side of the volcano.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. "Come on Zeek." I called over my shoulder.

"This way." the red dragon ordered, gesturing through the gate with his claws and lead us through.

I stared up at the mountain in awe and slight annoyance. This stone staircase stretched for MILES! I know all of us have wings but then again not all dragons have them. Some dragons are born without them and there is a rare race of earth dragons who don't have wings at all if I remember correctly. I had a sudden feeling of appreciation for my ability if flight and followed the leading dragon obediently without complaint.

I felt a sudden weight fall on my shoulders, causing me to look in shock. Zeek had clambered onto my back and now rode along lazily. I rolled my eyes but didn't protest. The poor little dragon is considerably younger than me after all. Even though he has a pair of massive wings, he's been flying for three days without much rest.

I was panting by the time the three of us reached the peak of the volcano. But my heaving breaths caught in my throat as I stared out over the massive cauldron of bubbling lava. Stone structures towered into the smoke-filled sky, suspended above the lava by huge pillars. Stone walkways twisted and spiraled between the castle-like towers like an intricate maze. Hundreds of dragons were busy flying around or stalking along the walkways between the buildings.

I simply stared at the sight before me, mouth agape and eyes wide in awe and childish wonder. Zeek stepped up next to me and smirked.

"Cool, huh?" he said sarcastically. I could only manage a stiff nod in reply.

Our guide snorted in annoyance and amusement. "Come on. We have to make it to the dragon council before nightfall." He growled. Turning to us he said, "Can you fly?"

Zeek snorted in annoyance. "Of course we can!"

"Right. Then follow me." The red fire dragon said. He spread his massive orange wings and took flight. Zeek and I quickly followed.

I was surprised at how easy it was to fly up here. I would think that the thinner air at this high altitude would interfere with flight. I guess the warm updrafts from the boiling magma below allowed for smooth flying. As a result, we quickly flew over the volcano and above another.

I observed how these mountains were clustered around one massive volcano that towered above the rest. It was to this volcano we seemed to be headed. I guess the council is located in the crater.

My question was answered quickly. The three of us swooped over the brim of the volcano's edge and came face-to-face with a massive castle-like structure. The carvings and statues that adorned both the walkways and the courtyard were much like those in the Canterlot garden. Except with them being dragon-themed and whatnot. The dark structure rose high above the crater's edge as if to watch over the entire world. I wouldn't be surprised if one could actually see all of the world from up there.

Zeek nudged me back to reality before I slowly strayed in another direction. I shook my head and focused on my flight instead of the awesome castle.

We landed on a huge courtyard made from stone that stretched like a balcony in front of the castle, suspended above the churning magma by huge pillars. I looked around and saw various statues of dragons and other magical creatures. The walls and ground were carved with intricate designs that seemed to tell a story, winding around the statues and up the sides of the castle.

"This way." The red fire dragon announced. "The council will be seeing you now." He lead me and Zeek through a huge stone door and into the castle before flying away. inside was a beautiful lobby with a tall arching roof with a glowing crystal chandelier that hung down in the center. A white dragon sat behind a desk in the corner, scribbling away at something.

"Go right in. Luckily the council isn't busy at the moment." The white dragon called suddenly, gesturing to a tall door to the side. Her voice was quite annoying like a librarian of sorts.

I nervously trotted over to a huge door on the other side of the room. It towered above me and Zeek like a dark monolith. I took a deep breath, stood up straight, and pushed the door open. Zeek hid behind me as I walked inside, staring around nervously.

The parliament room was a massive cavern with carved walls and shimmering flags hanging from the ceiling. A big pit of flame burned in the center, lighting the whole place like a beacon. Six huge dragons sat atop stone pillars at the back of the room.

A gold and brown dragon was at the front of the others. He looked ancient and wise with an odd aura of strength although he looked quite old. He was a fire dragon with curved horns on his head. One of the horns was missing, only a jagged portion was left. The dragon's wings were a golden brown with feathers along the arm but the membrane was normal for fire dragons. Long ragged feathers flowed down his back and to the tip of his tail.

A pretty looking purple fire dragon sat to the right of the gold one. She looked quite young, around twenty-five years. (the dragons don't have to be old farts to become an elder) She had a friendly smile and pretty features. A well-kept plume of fluffy pink fur grew around her shoulders like a feather boa. She had a skinny muzzle and pretty pink eyes with a pair of gently curving horns on her head. Long fur flowed down her back and fluffed out into a fan on the end of her tail. Instead of normal wings, this dragon was a wyvern like Zeek except she had 'finger' bones in her wings and an actual paw of sorts at the top of the arm bone. (it looks like a normal arm but had a flowing wing growing from the bottom. Kinda like those dresses with the hanging sleeves? Meh, I am terrible at describing characters.)

To the right of the gold dragon was a dark blue and aqua air dragon with an aura of knowledge around her. She had strong searching blue eyes and a gentle smile. Her body was covered in fur and feathers instead of scales. Feathers and spikes traced down her spine and fanned out at the end of her tail. She had skinny white horns that curved upward at the end like a hook. Like all air dragons, she had a massive pair of feathered eagle-like wings on her back. What was unusual about this particular dragon was her legs. They were slender and both front and back had a plume of long feathers fan out from the joint. From the ankle/elbow down the leg was bird-like in structure. (kinda like a griffon's front legs except skinnier.)

to the left was a dark brown earth dragon. He had cold eyes and a disapproving frown to add to his already intimidating appearance. He was big and spikes like all earth dragons. However, he did not sport a pair of wings at all. Earth dragons may not be the best fliers, but they always have wings anyway. This dragon did not have wings whatsoever.

On the right of the purple and pink dragon sat a tall and proud dark green earth dragon. His brown eyes were slightly less cold than the other earth dragon's but were intimidating all the same. Thick ram-like horns curled from the back of his head, framing his face. He had a powerful tail with a stone-like tip that looked to be used for bashing. His wings were worn and ragged but strong like the rest of him.

Last was an odd pitch-black air dragon. He had a disapproving scowl and cold black eyes that sent shivers down my spine every time he looked at me. He had a huge pair of black raven-like wings and sharp spikes lining his back. Instead of horns this dragon had a tuft of long black feathers on each side if his head that resembled ears. He had powerful legs with long deadly claws. Note to self, stay away from this guy.

(Finally! Done with the walls of text to describe these guys! I have drawings of them all on Deviantart if you want a visual.)

"Welcome!" Boomed the golden dragon. His kind eyes sparked warmly in the fire's glow. "This is truly a rare sight! We have not had many ponies visit our kingdom, and none as unusual as you. Please introduce yourself!"

I stared up at the huge dragon nervously and gulped. "I-I'm Sapphire, Sir. And t-this is Zeek." I said meekly.

"Zeek, my boy! so this is where you ran off to! You know Schor didn't like it when you disappear!" He laughed. Then turning to me he said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Sapphire. I am Halieetus, the head Elder of this council."

Halieetus turned to the purple and pink dragon who sat next to him. "This is Surnia, a scholar Elder. Don't let her appearance fool you, she is a strong and loyal dragon."

Halieetus then gestured to the blue she-dragon to his left. "This is Aquila, another scholar Elder. If you have a question, ask her."

next was the dark brown earth dragon. "This is Arctos, one of our military Elders. Strong and conceited sum him up perfectly."

Halieetus pointed to the other earth dragon across from Arctos. "That is Terra, another military Elder. He is strong and loyal with a skill for battle strategy."

last was the black air dragon who sat to the far right. "Corvus is our newest member, He is a scholar elder who doesn't like to speak very often so we don't know much about him." Halieetus finished.

"It's an honor to meet you. I have traveled here with an urgent message from the princesses of Equestria.W-We've also brought gifts..." I stammered nervously as I rummaged through my saddle bag.

Halieetus tilted his head. "An urgent message? We haven't gotten a message from Celestia since the great war of nightmare moon. Tell me, is she doing alright? The loss of her sister dealt a heavy blow on her spirit." he asked.

I hastily pulled out the decorated box of rare gems and the message scroll. "Uh... S-She's fine... So is princess Luna. They reunited after the new bearers of the elements purged the darkness from Luna's soul." I answered sheepishly. I hadn't had much time to study pony history so that was all I knew, but I wasn't about to admit that!

"Good, good." Halieetus mumbled with a smile. His golden gaze darkened and became more serious. "What about this message?"

"Oh!" I gasped embarrassedly. I grabbed the scroll in my teeth and galloped up to where Halieetus sat upon a pillar. I looked up at the tall throne that towered above me and gulped nervously. With a flap of my wings I flew up to the old dragon and gave him the scroll. It was smaller compared to what they probably wrote on but big enough to read clearly. He thanked me and began to read the message. I hovered nearby and waited.

Halieetus' expression became more and more troubled as he read until finally he finished. He rolled up the parchment and handed it to the scholar elder Aquila while murmuring something urgently. The blue air dragon took the scroll and quickly skimmed through it. The message passed around to all of the elders, each becoming just as worried as the other at the information it held.

I noticed that Corvus didn't seem very worried when he read it. He seemed angry and slightly horrified. But that would be expected when reading about something as terrible as this.

"This is very troubling..." Halieetus murmured. He turned to the blue air dragoness sitting beside him. "Aquila, I want you to find any information on these shadow creatures." he commanded. Aquila nodded and leaped into the air. She soared effortlessly through a big window-like opening in the ceiling.

"Arctos, Terra." the named dragons sat up strait and looked at Halieetus. "I want you to search through the military's files to see if we've ever fought anything like this in the past." Halieetus commanded. The two earth dragons saluted their leader and left the room.

"Surnia." said dragon perked up upon being called. "I need you to investigate the area for any signs of these static shadows." Surnia nodded enthusiastically and bounced away.

Halieetus then turned to the last dragon in the room. "And you, Corvus, are to guide Sapphire to a suitable den. She is now our guest of honor and as such should be treated with utmost respect."

Corvus seemed shocked at Halieetus' commands but it soon gave way into suppressed anger. "But Sir... This pony could be a spy or she could be lying... Why must I guide her?! I'm an elder and she's just a pony!" he argued.

Halieetus narrowed his eyes. "This pony is an important guest, Corvus. If the information she brought is true, then this is a matter of national emergency. You know as well as I do that if these static shadows are truly caused by something in the kingdom Celestia has the right to go to war. Make sure both Sapphire and Zeek are taken care of." He growled.

Corvus glared at the golden dragon for a few more moments before snarling in annoyance. "Fine!" he grumbled.

Before Corvus could get up I spoke. "Um... May I speak to my father first?" I asked.

Halieetus and Corvus looked at me in bewilderment and confusion. "Your father?" The head elder questioned. "Why would he be in the dragon kingdom? We rarely get any pony visitors..."

"H-He's not a pony... He is a dragon. And he used to be an elder too..." I murmured nervously.

Halieetus blinked and tilted his head. "Your father was a dragon? An ELDER? What was his name?" he asked.

"E-Elder Scohr..." I said.

A look of horror flashed across Corvus's face for a split second. But it was gone so quickly that I wondered if I had imagined it.

Halieetus's eyes widened. "You are Schor's daughter?! I'm sorry, I didn't know! He told me his daughter was a pony and he was very proud of her before he...he..." Halieetus trailed off and looked down at me with eyes full of sadness and sympathy.

I felt my heart skip and dread pool in my stomach. "Before he what?" I asked shakily.

Halieetus jumped down from his pillar, wincing slightly when his old joints protested against the movement. He walked up to me and smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry Sapphire... but... Schor is dead..."

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(Dun dun DUNNN! Again, sorry for the wait!)


	31. Chapter 30

- chapter 30

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"Scohr is dead..."

My whole body went numb upon hearing those words. My legs grew weak and collapsed under me. My wide eyes were sightless as I stared up at Halieetus in disbelief. I vaguely heard Zeek whimper and fall behind me.

"W...What...?" I whispered.

Halieetus placed his huge clawed paw on my shoulder comfortingly. "I'm so sorry... He died a few days ago. He was very sick and weak from an unknown illness. He had to leave the elder council and was soon replaced by Corvus. His death was terrible for us all, especially Surnia... I'm sorry." He murmured.

"M-My dad... He's... No..." I whimpered. My eyes stung and my vision blurred as tears began to well up but I closed my eyes tightly before they could fall.

I faintly heard the shuffle of paws and felt a warm embrace. I opened my eyes and saw Zeek hugging me tightly. His small furry body shook with sobs. He was crying too, and I doubt that the hug was meant to comfort me... Schor was like a father to Zeek...

I sniffled and wrapped my forelegs around Zeek and squeezed him softly. 'I gotta be strong... I'm the only friend Zeek has left... And if I break down here in front of him, it would just cause more grief.'

"Miss Sapphire?" Halieetus called softly.

I looked up at him and gave a sad smile. "I'm alright... T-Thanks for telling us... We will be going now." I said shakily. I picked up my saddle back and put it back on. "Corvus, Sir... I'm ready to go." The black dragon eyed me suspiciously and gave a short grunt in response.

"Oh, Halieetus... This is for you and the other elders from the princesses..." I said before we left. I handed an elegant box to the big dragon and smiled. "Thanks for agreeing to help." I held out my hoof for a hoofshake.

Halieetus smiled and pulled me into a hug instead. I was shocked at first. this guy is the head Elder, as in, the ruler of the kingdom! Wait... So I'm, like, hugging the dragon king? Awesome...

"Take care. Corvus will take you to your den." he said once we let go.

"Thanks." I called as I followed Corvus outside. Zeek was curled up on my back with his wings covering his face. Poor little guy...

The three if us walked in silence to the end of the balcony. Corvus grunted and spread his huge raven wings and took to the sky. I flew carefully behind him, making sure not to drop Zeek. I felt him grip the saddle bag with his claws to hang on so I flew faster.

"Uh... Corvus, Sir? Where are going to stay?" I asked nervously. This guy kinda scares me...

"I was thinking maybe the cave dens in the Laut volcano's base where there isn't much heat... Seeing how you're a weak pony after all." he growled in response.

"Oh..." I mumbled, not bothering to ask which volcano was called Laut. I didn't try to talk to Corvus again, he obviously didn't want to anyway...

We flew in silence over the rim of the main volcano and into the cooler air between. The sun would soon set. Corvus slowly banked to the left and glided downwards toward a smaller volcano next to the main one. I guessed that that was Laut. I wonder what the other volcanoes are called?

Corvus descended to the rim of the volcano and landed on the edge. He grunted and motioned to a pathway winding down the side.

"Those stairs will lead you to your den." he grumbled.

"T-Thanks..." I squeaked and began to walk down the path.

"You know..." Corvus muttered before I left. I looked at him in confusion. "Just because you are a guest of honor doesn't mean you are honorable. You are among giants, pony. Watch yourself, you may get stepped on." He growled ominously before flying away.

"What was that supposed to mean?" I whispered to myself. 'Something tells me he didn't mean that literally... Corvus must think I'm up to something... Maybe he's just being proactive of the kingdom or he's just really judgmental...' I shook the thoughts away and trotted down the path.

But soon my thoughts began to wander again. 'what if he's right? I am just a pony... Even if fire runs through my veins... I'll never fit in with them... Not the dragons or the ponies...' I hung my head sadly as I approached a cave entrance.

I trotted inside and dumped my saddle bag in a corner, making sure not to wake Zeek, and made my way deeper into the cave. I wanted nothing more than to hide away and cry...

In a separate chamber to the right of the entrance was a sleeping quarters with two small nests. They were piles of finely powdered ash covered by animal skins. I dumped Zeek into one and flopped down into the other.

I curled in on myself and tried not to think about my father... But my efforts were in vain as sad thoughts of worthlessness and loneliness crept into my mind.

My body shuddered in silent sobs as I slowly fell asleep...

* * *

Muffled rustling and a warm body aroused me from my sleep. I groggily opened my eyes and saw Zeek curl up next to me in the darkness. I noticed the fur on his cheeks was wet with tears... Did he cry himself to sleep?

Zeek settled down next to me and sighed quietly. His body was a few inches away from mine, he must be making sure not to get too close no matter how badly he wanted to bury his face into my fur and cry. Zeek let out another sigh and stared out the the den entrance and watched the dust dance in the moonlight that filtered through the exit.

I smiled sadly, 'he thinks I'm still asleep...'

I reached my foreleg out and pulled the young dragon close. He tensed in surprise and turned his head to stare at me. I smiled warmly at him and wrapped my legs and wings around his little body, trying to comfort him as much as I could.

Zeek let himself relax and wriggled closer. He buried his muzzle into my fur and sighed, finally closing his eyes to sleep without worry.

I smiled to myself and gave the little dragon an affectionate squeeze before following him sleep.

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(D'AAAAAAAWWWW! ;u; das all I can say right now... Just... SO CUTE! )

(Okay... I have a little question for you guys. Should Zeek and Sappie's relationship be a motherly thing or love? I'm not so sure... Zeek is younger but not by too much... And I'm not that great at romantic stuffs... ANYWAY! it's up to you! Which do you want to see?)

Please review!


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